By Socrate Nsimba/The Africa Report
With less than a month to go before the general elections in DRC, all eyes are on opposition candidates who remain dispersed in the face of incumbent president and re-election candidate Felix Tshisekedi.
On 19 November, former prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Matata Ponyo Mapon announced his support for businessman and former governor of the copper-rich Katanga region, Moïse Katumbi. Two days later, opposition candidates Seth Kikuni and Franck Diongo threw their support behind him as well.
Did this come as a surprise to Denis Mukwege, Nobel Prize winner and the most famous Congolese gynaecologist, who published his own electoral programme on 21 November?
Mapon explained his decision by referencing “the conclusions of the Pretoria talks” — discussions in South Africa’s administrative capital in which Mapon’s representatives and those of four main opposition candidates took part the week prior.
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Opposition leader Martin Fayulu’s delegates did not sign the document, which was drawn up at the end of the Pretoria talks, but Mukwege did; a move that has triggered the rumour mill now abuzz with questions surrounding the doctor’s bid for the country’s top job.
Setting the record straight
“In accordance with the wishes of millions of Congolese, Dr Mukwege is still a candidate in the presidential election and remains open to dialogue on the designation of a common opposition candidate,” says a 20 November statement from Mukwege’s chief of staff Vital Barholere.
The designation of a common candidate requires more than ever a frank consultation between the candidates concerned
On the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Mukwege’s political adviser Albert Moleka said: “The designation of a common candidate requires more than ever a frank consultation between the candidates concerned.”
Running on principle
“I am not running to start a political career. I am running for three ends: an end to war, an end to hunger and an end to all [forms of] vice,” he said in the preamble to the 95-page document, which we were able to consult.
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Built around 12 pillars, this programme called ‘Repairing and caring for the Congo from top to bottom’, is essentially based on security concerns, which he has made his flagship issue. It also emphasises the fight against poverty and ‘anti-values’ that, like corruption, he says, are eating away at the country.
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“Throughout this election campaign, I will not attack my opponents,” says. “In no way can [doing that] inform the debate, [it] offends the dignity of the office for which we are running and degrades our collective intelligence.”
Not backing down
Some see the publication of the election programme as a sign that Mukwege is determined to see the fight through to the end.
“Dr Mukwege has entered this election as an individual. It is therefore normal that he should first present his programme, especially his peace plan. But he remains conciliatory and open to others for the greater good of the country,” says Roger Puati, head of the Alliance des Congolais pour la refondation de la nation (ACRN), the political platform supporting Mukwege’s candidacy.
However, members of his entourage acknowledge that they see the announcements of support for Katumbi from Matata Ponyo, Kikuni and Diongo as a way of putting pressure on Mukwege.
“The Pretoria process is underway,” Puati says, pointing out that a single opposition candidate has not yet been designated. “But, unfortunately we have the impression that there have been parallel commitments.”
