Lately, Congolese ruler Félix Tshisekedi has stirred controversy in Houston after indirectly referring to his predecessor, Joseph Kabila, as a “dog planted by enemies to rule the DRC.”
Since then, his bootlickers have peddled the remark endlessly. Many of Tshisekedi’s loyalists have amplified the insults and attacked the opposition on behalf of the incompetent president. The rhetoric has even spread throughout the ruling UDPS party.
Augustin Kabuya, the ruling coalition UDPS Secretary General and closest crony of Tshisekedi, went even further, claiming that Joseph Kabila was responsible for the death of his father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila. “Everyone knows that it was Joseph Kabila who killed Désiré Kabila,” Kabuya asserted.
Such accusations and campaigns of political othering are intended to distract Congolese citizens from the realities of the past seven years, years marked by unfulfilled promises, unending ethnic violence, widespread insecurity, corruption and extreme kleptocracy.
Congolese must resist being drawn into these distractions. The current regime, led by Tshisekedi, has pushed the country deeper into conflict while normalizing divisive and inflammatory rhetoric. The persecution of Congolese Tutsi, particularly the Banyamulenge in South Kivu, carried out by his coalition of FARDC, FDLR, Wazalendo, and FDNB forces, has made eastern DRC increasingly unlivable.
At the same time, Tshisekedi, his family, and his close allies continue to benefit from the country’s vast resources. The provinces of Haut-Katanga and Lualaba have increasingly become zones of influence for the president’s inner circle. Significant mining areas are controlled by individuals close to the ruling family, including Christian Tshisekedi, under the protection of the Republican Guard.
Other strategic mining zones have been handed to foreign interests in exchange for political and security support aimed at preserving Tshisekedi’s hold on power.
It is undeniable that Congolese are increasingly dissatisfied with the direction of the country. Public frustration has become more visible, and growing sections of the population have expressed their desire for change.
Distracting people with hate rhetoric and scapegoating while the country struggles under conflict, economic hardship, abject poverty, and corruption may buy time, but it cannot silence reality forever.
The people deserve answers, not distractions.