The Constitutional Court of the Democratic Republic of Congo has rendered highly anticipated judgments concerning disputes linked to candidacies for the presidential election which will be held in December 2023. One of the files examined was that of Seth Kikuni, who contested the candidacy of current president Felix Tshisekedi.
Seth Kikuni had raised a question about the name used by Felix Tshisekedi during the 2018 presidential election and the upcoming one. According to him, the president had added the first name “Antoine” to his candidacy for the next election, which was a modification compared to his name previously used.
Initially, the Attorney General at the Constitutional Court recalled the role of the institution as an electoral judge and not as a body responsible for ruling on the names of the candidates. In addition, he stressed that Seth Kikuni had not demonstrated how this name change could have caused harm to his own candidacy.
After examining the request, the Constitutional Court finally declared it admissible but unfounded. This means that the Court agreed to study the file of Seth Kikuni, but concluded that there was no solid basis to challenge the candidacy of Felix Tshisekedi because of this change of name.
This decision by the Constitutional Court therefore validated the candidacy of Felix Tshisekedi in the presidential election of December 2023. This marks an important step in the country’s electoral process and confirms the participation of the outgoing president in this election.
It is important to emphasize that these judgments of the Constitutional Court have repercussions on the Congolese political landscape and spark debates within the population. Some support the Court’s decision, saying that Seth Kikuni’s petition lacked merit, while others express reservations about the integrity of the electoral process.
Regardless, these decisions by the Constitutional Court continue to shape the political landscape of the Democratic Republic of Congo and spark public interest in the upcoming presidential election.
Redacted