Former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) leader Joseph Kabila has blamed the worsening conflict in the country’s east on what he described as the poor governance of his successor, President Felix Tshisekedi.
In an opinion piece published Sunday in South Africa’s Sunday Times newspaper, Kabila argued that the ongoing unrest cannot be attributed solely to the Rwanda-backed M23 armed movement or tensions between Kinshasa and Kigali.
M23 fighters have rapidly advanced in recent weeks, seizing control of vast areas in the resource-rich eastern DRC. Their territorial gains have raised fears of the conflict spilling into neighboring countries.
Kabila, who stepped down in 2019 after Tshisekedi won the previous year’s election, claimed that the situation in the DRC has deteriorated to the point of being “close to imploding.”
He also dismissed the December 2023 elections that secured Tshisekedi a second term, calling them a “sham” and accusing the government of suppressing political opposition while consolidating power.
“Intimidation, arbitrary arrest, summary and extrajudicial executions, as well as the forced exile of politicians, journalists and opinion leaders, including church leaders, are among the main characteristics of Tshisekedi’s governance,” Kabila wrote.
He warned that focusing solely on defeating M23 or resolving tensions between the DRC and Rwanda would not bring stability.
“The innumerable violations of the constitution and human rights, as well as repeated massacres of the Congolese population by Tshisekedi’s police and military forces will not end after the successful conclusion of negotiations between the DRC and Rwanda, or the military defeat of M23,” he said.
Kabila argued that without addressing governance issues, the country would continue to face political instability, armed conflict, and possibly civil war.
“Any attempt to find a solution to this crisis that ignores its root causes — at the top of which lies the governance of the DRC by its current leadership — will not bring lasting peace.”
M23, which claims to be fighting to protect the rights of the DRC’s minority Tutsi population, resumed its insurgency in 2021—two years after Tshisekedi came to power.
South Africa has deployed over 1,000 soldiers in the DRC as part of a Southern African Development Community (SADC) mission to support the Congolese government and stabilise the region. The conflict has already taken a heavy toll on South African forces, with 14 soldiers killed last month.
