Thousands of people took to the streets in various cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo as outrage mounts over the National Assembly’s decision to nominate Ronsard Malonda to be president of the independent national electoral commission, CENI.
In the capital, Kinshasa, protestors, who were joined by former Congolese warlord and opposition leader Jean-Pierre Bemba, congregated in one of the city’s main avenues, Boulevard Lumumba, according to a report by AFP.
Other protests were reported in the eastern city of Bukavu and in the central city of Kananga, where, AFP reported, security forces dispersed protestors using tear gas.
The protest rallies were convened by the main alliance of opposition parties, LAMUKA.
Earlier this month, Malonda, who is currently the CENI’s secretary-general, was endorsed to head CENI by the National Assembly, which is dominated by supporters of former president Joseph Kabila. President Felix Tshisekedi is yet to approve of the nomination.
Pro-democracy activists accuse Malonda of playing a role of manipulating elections in favour of Kabila, including the 2018 poll in which Tshisekedi defeated LAMUKA’s Martin Fayulu.
The Interior ministry said that at least five people were killed and 20 police officers were injured last Thursday following protests in Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Goma and other smaller towns. Those protests were staged by Tshisekedi’s own party, the Union for Democracy and Progress (UDPS).
Religious leaders also released a statement calling on Tshisekedi not to consider the “controversial proposal” to approve Malonda’s nomination.
Catholic and citizens’ groups are set to stage another round of protests on July 19.
Rallies and mass gatherings are currently prohibited in the DR Congo as part of measures to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.
