Former Congolese President Joseph Kabila told his allies not to take part in the December 2023 elections if the electoral commission is not reconstituted.

His message was meant for allies that include members of his party, Parti du Peuple pour la Reconstruction et la Démocratie (PPRD), and those of his political coalition, Front Commun pour le Congo (FCC).

Kabila said he does not recognize the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) led by Denis Kadima and is calling for a new electoral commission to be set up, to guarantee equal opportunities for various stakeholders in the electoral process.

Related: DRC: Tshisekedi’s grand plan to rig elections exposed

In October 2021, the choice of Kadima as head of CENI caused anger. Thousands of opposition demonstrators poured on Kinshasa streets asking for a neutral election commission.

The police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators who chanted that Kadima is known to be very close to President Félix Tshisekedi and is a fellow tribesman from Kasai and therefore cannot be trusted to be impartial.

Under the electoral law of the Democratic Republic of Congo, all stakeholders must be represented in the electoral commission. All opposition parties do not recognize those individuals who currently lead CENI.

Worse still, the country’s legal system continues to be used to quash dissent. Opposition leaders, critical journalists, artists, and human rights activists, have been slapped with criminal charges or other trumped-up and arbitrary legal actions. The latter believe that the current situation in the DRC is not conducive to a free, fair and credible election.

Related: DRC: Tshisekedi shoots self in foot by crackdown on opposition ahead of elections

The Congolese are worried that CENI deliberately created problems of lack of power, sources of machines, delays in registration, delivery of kits, solar panels, cables, in order to organize electoral chaos to prepare for fraud.

President Tshisekedi is accused of using CENI to create more voting centers in his home province of Kasai, allegedly preparing to enroll thousands of ‘ghost voters.’

“To ensure the credibility, transparency and inclusiveness of the electoral process, our demands have not changed one way or the other. Credibility requires a consensual independent national electoral commission, which means all stakeholders must be represented,” Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, Permanent Secretary of the PPRD said to a regional newspaper.

Opposition leader Martin Fayulu who referred to 2018 election results as “a true electoral coup”, is also demanding a new audit of the voters’ list.

He said that the voters' list, with 43 million people registered by the electoral commission, is riddled with false voters in preparation for electoral fraud.

In April, Fayulu, leader of the Engagement for Citizenship and Development party, and colleagues from across the spectrum of civil society and the political opposition met in the city of Lubumbashi to discuss the deteriorating state of their country and potential solutions.

They were profoundly concerned about a number of issues that, if left unaddressed, will severely compromise the integrity of the upcoming election, scheduled for December.

"The problems are evident, and alarm bells are mounting," Fayulu noted.

According to Fayulu, since taking power after an election that was widely seen as fraudulent by both domestic and international observers, President Felix Tshisekedi has brazenly violated the country's constitution in a selfish pursuit to once again wrest power away from the Congolese people.

"He has appointed judges unconstitutionally; handpicked partisan members of the supposedly independent electoral commission (CENI); imposed or otherwise failed to reform unfair electoral laws that are favourable only to him; and declared a 'state of siege' – which amounts to martial law – in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, areas known to be opposition strongholds."

Kabila is yet to announce if he will contest in an attempt to return to power.

Related: DRC: Tshisekedi wreaking havoc on political opponents to gain advantage ahead of polls

Kabila and Fayulu have stayed out of the electoral race, while CENI has already shut the door on nomination of candidates for legislative election.

“We have to wait for Kabila’s signature or for someone to sign on Joseph Kabila’s behalf. That’s when we'll be able to say that the FCC is represented. We don’t know this independent national electoral commission,” Shadary said.

Tshisekedi has already announced that he will run for another term.

But fear is increasing among the Congolese that elections may hinge on the security situation in the east of the country. In this case, the election is likely to be delayed as the of state siege imposed on Ituri and North Kivu provinces since early 2021 is still in effect.

Related: Tshisekedi using state of siege to postpone presidential elections

Things are going from bad to worse as Tshisekedi’s government declined to implement different peace processes initiated to restore order in the region.

In June, Kabila complained about the credibility of CENI and the Constitutional Court, which are responsible for settling electoral disputes, adding that there is urgent need to stabilize the security situation throughout the country so as to enable every Congolese to vote freely and with dignity.

Congolese government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya accused opposition leaders of wanting to discredit the electoral process.