General Sylvano Kasongo, police commissioner for the city of Kinshasa, is at the heart of a controversy. He is accused of having covered up the spoliation of a concession which belonged to the estate of Mobutu Sese Seko, the former president of the DRC. This accusation emanates from the lawyer advising the family of Mobutu.
The concession in question, located in the commune of Kalamu in Kinshasa, is now the property of Patient Musaka, a Congolese citizen. According to the lawyer, this concession was legally acquired by Musaka from members of Mobutu’s family in 1986. However, certain Congolese political and police figures, including General Sylvano Kasongo, as well as the Minister of Social Affairs, humanitarian actions Modeste Mutinga, supported Lebanese subjects in the construction of buildings on this private property.
The dispute over this concession has had some twists and turns. In 1997, when the AFDL came to power, many of Mobutu’s assets were confiscated and placed under the responsibility of the Ministry of Social Affairs. In 2006, following the inter-Congolese dialogue at Sun-City, the President of the Republic took the decision to repeal the decrees requisitioning the property of the Mobutu family. This meant that the real estate of the Mama Mobutu Foundation automatically reverted to the heirs of Mobutu, represented by the liquidator.
Patient Musaka’s counsel denounces the illegal intervention of certain personalities to despoil the concession of Kalamu. He points out that the documents presented by Lebanese subjects and supported by General Sylvano Kasongo and Minister Modeste Mutinga are falsified. He also wonders about the fact that several ministers of social affairs passed without selling this concession, and that this only happens at this time.
After the suspension of work on the concession and the sending of the case to the Court of Cassation, General Sylvano Kasongo and Minister Modeste Mutinga continued to support the Lebanese subjects. Police were sent to guard the concession, but several reports demonstrated their illegality.
The dispute over this concession raises questions about the ownership of former President Mobutu’s property and highlights the practices of spoliation and corruption that persist in the DRC. It also calls into question the responsibility of political and police figures who are supposed to protect the interests of the country and its citizens.
This case raises the question of impunity and justice in the DRC. Efforts must be strengthened to combat serious crimes and ensure the protection of citizens’ property and rights. In the meantime, the fate of the Kalamu concession remains uncertain, and the case continues to raise tensions within the country.