Tens of thousands of candidates, including the 26 candidates running for the highest office, officially launched a month-long election campaign in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday, in a tense political climate and against the backdrop of armed conflict in the east.
KINSHASHA.Opposition heavyweights did not hesitate to motivate their bases, while President Félix Tshisekedi, who is seeking a second term in office, held a series of inaugurations as his team trumpeted his achievements in a wide range of fields.
Félix Tshisekedi himself saw things through from day one, with a meeting at the Martyrs’ stadium in Kinshasa, while one of his main challengers, Martin Fayulu, harangued the crowds in a neighbouring province.
On December 20th, some 44 million registered voters out of a population of around 100 million will be called upon to elect their president, as well as choosing from over 100 thousand candidates for the legislative provincial and municipal elections.
A record, according to the Electoral Commission, which is determined to organize the elections on time, despite logistical difficulties in the country of 2.3 million squared km with very limited infrastructure.
“There is a political agenda that wants elections to be held on time, but there are doubts about technical capacity,” notes Trésor Kibangula, a political analyst at the Ebuteli research institute. The overall picture is mixed, according to analysts, and catastrophic according to the opposition, which paints a gloomy picture of the situation and immediately cries organized fraud.
In addition to Martin Fayulu, who claims victory was stolen from him in 2018, the main opposition candidates are Moïse Katumbi, former governor of the Katanga mining region, Dr Denis Mukwege, winner of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on behalf of raped women, and two former prime ministers.
Representatives of five of them met this week in South Africa to discuss the possibility of a joint candidacy against the incumbent president, who is the favourite, especially in a single-round election.
A coalition was formed, and a common program adopted, but only by the emissaries of four candidates, as the Fayulu camp did not sign up to the project.
Voters are divided on the value of voting.
Eunice, 20, a geography student, will be voting for the first time and says she is “happy” to do so for the candidate of her choice, whom she expects to “improve living conditions”.
As for Ezekiel, another 24-year-old student in business computing, he’s disillusioned. There will be “fraud, just like in 2018”, he says. Besides, “I’m not going to waste my time at the voting centre”.