Regional

Tshisekedi is isolating DRC but it is the Congolese that will suffer

2023-12-22 05:30:00

Following the creation of a new Congolese politico-military opposition platform, Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), by Congolese opposition figure Corneille Nangaa, in Nairobi on December 15, all hell broke loose in Kinshasa.

The AFC creation in Kenya sparked a diplomatic row between Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Congolese government angrily blamed Kenya for the coalition’s creation, and recalled its ambassador to Nairobi, right after summoning the Kenyan envoy in Kinshasa to protest the creation of the new coalition.

The move also soured relations between DRC and the East African Community (EAC) and Kinshasa recalled its representative to the regional bloc, in Arusha, Pierre Masala.

During his five-year term, diplomacy has not been Felix Tshisekedi’s forte. He has been unable to resolve diplomatic quarrels the right way, but resorted to completely breaking off relations with other countries.

In October 2022, Kinshasa expelled Rwanda’s ambassador after accusing Kigali of supporting the M23 rebels, an accusation Kigali denied. However, with the latest row, DRC relations with the whole region are deteriorating.

Following the row, Congolese Interior Minister Peter Kazadi, issued a statement reminding Kenya to stick to the rules and instruments, which bind both countries.

“This ensures that we cannot attack each other, that we cannot maintain armed groups which destabilize our respective countries," Kazadi said.

The Congolese stand on the diplomatic issue only reflects Tshisekedi’s double standards.

The east of DRC has been home to more than 200 armed groups, of which many are from the region. Among them is FDLR, a terror group, formed by criminals responsible for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

Tshisekedi’s government has not only hosted these génocidaires, but armed, supported, and integrated them into the national army. The group's only mission is to fight and return to Rwanda, overthrow the current government and finish its unfinished job; exterminating the Tutsi.

It’s baffling, then, how the Congolese government would attack the government of Kenya just because an opposition group held a press conference in Nairobi and announced the formation of a coalition to oppose the government in Kinshasa.

Tshisekedi ignored the appeals for political dialogue as proposed by EAC leaders so as to resolve conflicts in eastern DRC, and chased the Regional Force which had been deployed to quell violence in his country.

The East African Regional Force had been praised for its tremendous efforts ensuring a ceasefire.

Tshisekedi should understand that DRC is a country that needs to live in harmony with its neighbors. Bad diplomatic relations only affect his citizens, who need to live well, trade and do business with their neighbors.

If Tshisekedi continues to chase foreign diplomats and recall his, it is the Congolese people that will suffer.

The Congolese leader seemed determined to make his country a pariah state, through his isolationist policies, which only increased the risks of insecurity and impoverishment.