The Democratic Republic of Congo might bear a wrong name?

The announcement of a new adjournment of the presidential elections on July 2017 in Democratic Republic of Congo had the effect of a bomb in a country already politically unwell. The opposition denounces a manipulation of President Joseph Kabila to hold on power.

Joseph Kabila became Chief of the State in 2008, after the assassination of his father and former president of DRC, Laurent Désiré Kabila. Thereafter he was reelected in 2011.

According to the Constitution one can only be elected president twice. Indeed, his mandate came to an end in November 2016. Consequently, he cannot run in another presidential election.

RDC's President Joseph Kabila

Elections were supposed to be held on 27 November 2016. However in December 2016, the Saint Sylvester Agreement was voted. It is an agreement of the presidential majority and the opposition, under the aegis of the Catholic Church to postpone the election to end of 2017.

It was agreed to establish a transitional government which would be led by a representative of the opposition until the presidential and legislative elections at the end of 2017. It also includes the retention of the actual president until an elected successor come to power/ entry in function. On April 7th, Bruno Tshibala from the opposition was nominated prime minister.

To manifest its anger the population went down in the streets. This summer, deadly strikes and protests occurred in many cities especially in Kinshasa where a dozen of manifestants were killed by the police. But the Kabila didn’t move a bit.

Protestation in Kinshasa this summer

The president of the Ceni -Independent National Electoral Commission-, Corneille Nangaa, announces on France's TV5Monde that “it will probably not be possible to stick” the “date"of the elections after 2017. The opposition quickly denounced Nangaa's announcement as a declaration of "war".

Moreover, this period of political instability comes in a context of financial and social unrest.

DRC has about 3.7 million internally displaced people. Some 992,000 were "newly displaced in 2016," according to a report by the Norwegian Refugee Council's Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. In addition 1.3 million Congolese have fled the most recent violence in Kasai Province.

Concerning the finance, the Congolese franc has been devalued of 40% (now 1$=1562,4 CFC).

UN urges DRC to hold elections before the December 2017 deadline saying that that a “failure to do so will increase the risk of insecurity and instability in the country and the region”.

The major figure of opposition to Kabila, Etienne Tshisekedi died in February 2017 in addition Moses Katumbi, Joseph Kabila's main adversary exiled from the country. These two events has shaken up a disorderly political landscape.It is not yet known who will run in the presidential elections

The wind of democracy does not seem to have blown correctly on “Democratic Republic of Congo”...

What do you mean?

- The aegis of the Catholic Church: The protection of the Catholic Church

- To postpone: to delay, to set back.