The Pona Congo Citizen Network initiated this Friday, May 19, 2023 a project called “Congo Tolingi” which aims to identify the expectations of Congolese citizens and give them a voice. This initiative aims to strengthen the engagement of the population in society while identifying the various difficulties encountered by the inhabitants of the deep Congo.
The public consultations, which will begin on June 1, 2023, will be organized in three stages. The first stage will concern the meeting with the population in the 35 main cities of the DRC, the second stage dedicated to popular forums and the third stage will be a digital consultation via an application.
For Floribert Anzuluni, activist of the Filimbi movement, which is one of the initiators of the project, the public debate does not focus enough on the challenges facing the country, in particular the insecurity in the east of the country, the phenomenon kuluna, rising food prices, among others. This is why the Pona Congo Citizen Network has decided to engage and consult itself in order to draw up specifications, a social contract to be imposed on potential elected officials and leaders of the country.
During the six months of consultations, the various themes addressed will focus on purchasing power, health, education, justice and corruption. The result of the first phase of consultation will be made public on June 19, 2023 via a social contract that will be signed by the organizers of these consultations and the future leaders of the country.
The Pona Congo Network brings together activists from various citizen movements such as Lucha, Filimbi, civil society, members of the Ministry of Lay Protestants (MILAPRO), as well as the Council of the Apostolate of Lay Catholics of Congo (CALCC).
This initiative is commendable given the challenges facing the country. However, it is important that the results are taken into account to bring a real change in the lives of Congolese