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DRC: Tshisekedi wants EAC regional force out, what’s next?
Tshisekedi confronts the EACRF commander, Gen. Nyagah before his own President, William Samoei Ruto, telling him to do the right thing and fight the M23
For decades,
the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has struggled with insecurity, and has
constantly failed to quell the violence in the east of the country. Upon
joining the East African Community (EAC) in March 2022, the DRC requested for
help in tackling the hundreds of armed groups wreaking havoc in the country.
Through
the Nairobi process, in June 2022, the bloc’s leadership agreed to establish a
joint force to stem the violence. True to their word, shortly afterwards- in
November 2022- the first batch of the regional force landed in eastern DRC.
Their
mandate was to help restore peace and stability in
eastern DRC. However, they had a deadline to execute their mission; February
2023.
On
April 27, the DRC government held a ‘clarification working session’, around the
renewal of the mandate of the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF).
However, the meeting was futile.
According
to sources, Kinshasa does not wish to extend the regional force’s mandate but
wishes for their departure, so they can be replaced by Angolan troops, which
are yet to come.
It
has been an open secret that DRC President, Felix Tshisekedi, wants EACRF out
of his country, Tshisekedi’s hostility towards EACRF is based on the fact that
the force ‘did not fight’ the M23 rebels, and he went as far as accusing them
of ‘collaborating and favoring’ the
rebels.
But
the regional force has only done what it is mandated to do; securing all
territories evacuated by the M23 rebels, as stipulated in the Luanda agreement
as a condition for dialogue with their government. The regional forces now
occupy the evacuated areas of Sake, Kibumba, Rumangabo, Mushaki, Kilolirwe,
Kitchanga, Kiwanja and Bunagana, among many others.
The
EAC Secretariat has indicated that the bloc is proud of the work that has so
far been accomplished by the regional force towards restoration of peace and security
in eastern DRC because EACRF has made tremendous progress in its efforts to
restore peace and stability in eastern DRC as envisaged by the EAC Heads of
State.
Despite
all efforts they have put in to keep east DRC safe, EACRF has been subjected to
a number of attacks from Congolese, including hundreds of violent demonstrators
against them. This intimidation, consequently, led to the resignation of the
Force Commander, Maj Gen Jeff Nyagah, who cited “aggravated threat to his
safety and a systematic plan to frustrate efforts of the EACRF” as his reason.
The
startling details about intimidation in Nyagah's resignation letter
are an indication that the regional force is operating in a hostile
environment. Kinshasa’s behaviour raised lots of questions about what is next
for the regional force. Will they continue to operate in such a hostile
environment? In addition, what is their future in eastern DRC? Will the force
survive?
Insiders
have revealed that East African countries that deployed troops under the
regional force have experienced financial difficulties in keeping the
operations ongoing but decided to put peace efforts first, nonetheless.
Political
commentators have argued that East African leaders are getting frustrated by
their Congolese counterpart. They are investing all their efforts in bringing
peace to his volatile country, but Tshisekedi is sabotaging each move made, and
creating more chaos.
So
the question remains: does Tshisekedi really want them to help bring peace, or
he has other ulterior motives?
Tshisekedi’s
agenda is to keep the conflict in his country ongoing, and therefore postpone
elections, which will effectively make him stay in power much longer. The
Congolese know very well, they say, that he cannot win an election.
But derailing
the peace processes, and especially forcing the regional force out is not the
right way to go.
At
this point, Tshisekedi’s advisors should remind him that patience has its
limits! And the EAC’s patience will run dry too if he continues his
shenanigans.
