Yesterday, former DR Congo army chief Gen. Christian Tshiwewe was arrested. He was taken with his aide de camp and some other generals to DEMIAP (Military Detection of Antipatriotic Activities,), the military intelligence center in Kinshasa.
No official communication was issued and no reason was given.
Gen. Tshiwewe, a Luba and once a confidante of despot Felix Tshisekedi was not arrested alone. Lt. Gen. Philemon Yav, former 3rd defense zone commander and Maj. Gen. Albert Mwenda Nyembo were all rounded up yesterday and taken to military intelligence facilities for interrogation i.e. torture.
Sources in Kinshasa state that they are arrest have something to do with a coup-d’etat.
From the look of things, the center of gravity in Kinshasa is starting to crumble. General Tshiwewe wasn’t just a senior commander. He led the Republican Guard, the force responsible for the president’s security. His arrest shows the government is afraid of its own people. When the man who was supposed to keep Tshisekedi safe is arrested, it means the regime is losing order and control.
There is no doubt, inside Tshisekedi’s camp, fear is growing. Many believe these arrests are to stop a possible coup, which has been looming for a while now. Some even attempted it last year but failed, since that time the air at the State House has never been the same. Tshisekedi has been changing guards innumerable times and often bring closer to himself the people blindly loyal to him.
Other close allies like Major Generals Jean-Claude Tshibangu and Chico Tshitambwe have been quietly pushed aside, since M23 liberation campaign started. Tchitambwe who was commanding the Eastern parts of the country was moved to Kinshasa following the liberation of Goma and Bukavu. He would later be replaced by General Masunzu Masumbuko whose whereabouts remain unknown as well.
News reaching our desk have it that In Kinshasa, many people are worried. Soldiers talk quietly about the arrests and fear what will happen next. They do not know who is loyal and who is a threat. The Republican Guard is weak and confused. The army is watching everything closely. DEMIAP, the military intelligence, seems to be in charge behind the scenes.
This silence in Kinshasa about these arrests makes people more scared and suspicious. When the government does not explain itself, rumors grow.
Many have started to draw conclusion that the government is falling apart from inside because danger is not from outside enemies or protests, but from inside Tshisekedi’s own circle.