DRC: Tshisekedi calls on young people to form "vigilance groups"
(Illustration) Felix Tshisekedi, during an interview with RFI and France 24, September 23, 2022. © RFI/France 24
Text by: RFI Follow
3 mins
In the midst of a crisis with the M23 and Rwanda, the Congolese president noted in an address to the Nation the failure of diplomatic channels and affirmed that his country was at war.
He denounced "
the expansionist tendencies
" of Rwandan power and called on young Congolese to form "
vigilance groups
".
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With our correspondent in Kinshasa
,
Patient Ligodi
During a speech on national television,
Felix Tshisekedi
did not mince his words.
The Head of State
denounced "
the expansionist inclinations
"
of the Rwandan government, which he describes as "
an enslaver whose main interest would be the appropriation of Congolese minerals
".
But one concept in particular, used by Félix Tshisekedi in his speech, caught the eye.
The Head of State called on young people to form “
vigilance groups
”.
The war imposed on us by our neighbors demands sacrifices from each of us.
The nation needs the commitment of all its daughters and sons.
Speech by Felix Tshisekedi, Congolese President
A formula on which returned to the microphone of RFI the Minister of Communication and the Media, Patrick Muyaya, specifying that it is not a question of the constitution of self-defense groups.
“
Being vigilant means being able to denounce.
We are not going to solve one problem by creating others.
It is in no way about popular justice or self-defense groups
", he insisted, adding that Felix Tshisekedi made the difference by specifying that the young people who want to be enlisted in the army are the welcome, what's more in this period.
Same explanation given in the president's entourage: “
It is a citizen appeal to avoid infiltration among civilians
”.
"
It is an invitation to improve relations between the security services and the population to avoid any unpleasant surprises
", said one of his advisers who gives the example of the messages that the authorities distill during periods of attack. terrorist.
Another member of the Head of State's cabinet also specified that these vigilance groups are also called upon to denounce all those who would be tempted to attack the Rwandophone-speaking populations.
“
An admission of the failure of the security services
”
This is not the first time that civil-military relations have been publicly discussed in recent days.
In mid-October, Army General Célestin Mbala Munsense, outgoing Chief of General Staff, had recommended to his successor, Lieutenant-General Christian Tshiwewe Songhesha to capitalize on the increasingly manifest support of the population for the armed forces "
in the face of external aggression
".
For its part, the citizen movement the Fight for Change (Lucha) castigates the "
absurd incantations
" of President Félix Tshisekedi.
While
the M23 fighters are
advancing, Stewart Muhindo, a Lucha activist based in Goma in North Kivu, deplores the absence of strong measures: "
All he has proposed is this vigilance, which he has not defined outlines
”.
For Lucha, this call from the president is first seen as "
an admission of the failure of the security services
".
"
Because if the army was so strong, if the state of siege had succeeded, we would not have come to this
," comments Mr. Muhindo.
And to add about this call for the mobilization of young people: “
It is worrying, because there was no precision around the practical modalities of this mobilization.
The risks in a region like ours is that it will create nests, that it will multiply the number of local armed groups which may eventually be useful in curbing the M23, but which could remain sources of insecurity for the populations for years to come
.
► To read also: For Kenya, deploying troops in the DRC is "necessary and urgent"
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ground floor
Felix Tshisekedi
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