The Congolese opposition movement reacted to the City Hall’s ban on holding a popular meeting scheduled for June 17, 2023 in Place Sainte Thérèse de N’djili. Martin Fayulu, Matata Ponyo, Delly Sesanga and Moïse Katumbi, represented by the secretary general of his party Dieudonné Bolengetenge, told the press that the Town Hall refused their request because of an alleged reservation at the same place for the same day and at the same time by another organization.
The power in place is accused of muzzling the population and freedom of expression and movement. According to the leaders of the opposition, the country is in a new form of dictatorship, where the power imposes what it wants on nearly 100 million inhabitants. Augustin Matata Ponyo, one of the leaders of this movement, believes that this regime nevertheless declares itself to be a rule of law. He regrets that the government prevents the opposition from holding a meeting, a march or a sit-in, because he is convinced that an alliance between the opposition and the Congolese population could lead to political change in the DRC.
Supposed to be held on June 17, the meeting has been postponed to June 24, but the leaders fear that this postponement is only a subterfuge to prevent it from being held. They urge the Congolese population to remain calm and not to go to the meeting scheduled for June 17, but rather to mobilize on June 24. They invite the population to join them for a show of force at Place Sainte Thérèse in N’djili. For them, it is an opportunity for the population to protest against the power in place, which they describe as dictatorial and which, according to them, no longer wants to listen to the population.
In conclusion, this situation highlights the political tension in the DRC, where the opposition is muzzled and where the Congolese population no longer enjoys its freedom of expression and movement. The elections next December will be a real challenge for the country, which must change leaders to allow the population to live under the rule of law.