Survey on roads in the DRC: towards the release of the boss of the Road Fund?

Text by: RFI Follow

Placed in preventive detention for two weeks, Fulgence Bamaros Lobota, of the National Road Maintenance Fund (Foner), is suspected of being involved in financial embezzlement on a road construction contract in the Kivus provinces, as part of the emergency program known as the “100-day program”. At first instance, it had been decided to continue his detention, but everything could change on appeal. While civil society fears pressures on judges.

Publicity

With our correspondent in Kinshasa, Pascal Mulegwa

In this case, two judges of the TGI have already retracted and denounce a lack of independence. In defense of Fulgence Bamaros Lobota, it is mainly because there is no evidence of guilt, contrary to what the prosecutor claimed.

"  Up to this point, the prosecutor has no evidence because, when the judge says that: I do not grant provisional release because this case is known on social networks and because this case is publicized, go understand,  ”said Me Jacques Muzele, lawyer for Fulgence Bamaros Lobota.

The independence of the magistrates in question

For civil society, it is the prosecutor who is right, who for several years has denounced embezzlement of Foner's revenue . This is why for Ernest Mpararo of the Congolese League against corruption (Licoco), justice must expand its investigations on the Foner beyond the "100 day program": "  It is a Pandora's box that we opened. We ask that we can even audit other projects. Since the gentleman heads Foner, there is quite a bit of information that we have coming from different governors who actually accuse Foner of not having achieved the mission that has been consigned to them since 2009. And we are certain that c was a sounding board during the Kabila regime.  "

In view of the profile of the character, civil society, it dreads pressure on the judges not necessarily to release Fulgence Bamaros, but also for his continued detention. The Kinshasa-Gombe high court must in any case debate this Friday again this request for appeal, formulated by the defense of the director general of Foner.

In addition, this Thursday evening, the Lay Coordination Committee (CLC), close to the Catholic Church, castigated any " insidious  " tendency  which would aim to break and discourage the efforts of "  honest magistrates  " for partisan interests, or in order to protect political partners in the ongoing judicial investigations in the country. This collective of civil society, which opposed the Kabila regime, has by a press release threatened to resume mobilization actions in support of the independence of the magistrates.

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