On Sunday, while addressing a gathering before the “justice palace” in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo’s known drunkard Justice Minister Constant Mutamba shamelessly announced he would not stand before prosecution to answer for embezzlement charges.
A few days before a lower court’s prosecutor reached out to the parliament demanding the lifting of immunity on Mutamba as a minister to allow investigation of misappropriation of public funds hovering around $30 million in illegal tenders in the construction of prisons in Kisangani.
Instead of respecting the process, the justice minister in a disjointed speech said that he does not fear prison and claimed that Prosecutor Mvonde is the one who should be standing trial. The reckless minister went as far as promising to obstruct the case against him by any means possible, turning his legal troubles into a political drama.
Without any sign of remorse, Mutamba accused Prosecutor Mvonde of being a “Kabilist,” suggesting he works for former president Joseph Kabila. In Congolese politics, that label carries weight—Kabila is now based in Goma in talks with the M23 group to “liberate” the country from the grip of Kinshasa. By invoking Kabila’s name, Mutamba was not only dodging responsibility but also reviving old political tensions.
That a sitting justice minister can openly defy the law and insult prosecutors is a sign of just how dysfunctional the government under President Félix Tshisekedi has become. Ministers behave as if they are above the law, protected by their positions and political loyalty. Tshisekedi has done little to curb this culture of impunity. Instead, his administration seems to reward recklessness and shield officials from accountability.
The corruption and lawlessness within Tshisekedi’s government are the very things—Kabila and M23 are fighting. In this climate, justice has become a game of power, not principle. And in that game, men like Mutamba are winning—loud, shameless, and untouched.