UN
United Nations Peacekeeping
5 Mar
2009
Press Review
A lot of ink continues to be spilled over the nominations of new governors as shown by the various comments in today's local press in Kinshasa.
Castigating the ''struggle for the control of rich provinces, contempt for some entities and vote-catching game in the nominations'', LE PHARE refers to a programmed hold-up. According to this paper, the presidential space ''managed to snap up everything for its own political survival''. The paper blames the presidency for having ''facilitated a hold-up of components and approved, through presidential decree, the nominations of governors and vice-governors''. It indicates that there were some private arrangements between the five key players in the presidential space. Otherwise, the paper says, ''Joseph Kabila would not have appointed a well known PPRD member as governor for Katanga, instead of a Maï-Maï candidate''. According to the paper, the MLC led by Jean-Pierre Bemba has played the same game for ''shamelessly taking Eastern Kasaï from RCD-N led by Roger Lumbala which keeps denouncing this loudly''. For the paper, the presidential space complicity is confirmed by ''the clean sweep'' made by vice president Arthur Z'Ahidi Ngoma within the Political Opposition's component with the discretionary appointment '' of the people from his own group only, knowing perfectly well that the Political Opposition component is composite and has no confirmed leader yet''. The paper fears that the complicity in the presidential space would lead to ''the enhancement of dictatorship in the components and turn their leaders to potentates'with the risk of their plotting against the electoral process and prolonging the transition of their own volition''.
LE PALMARES mentions '' heaps of protests'' sent to the Head of State. The paper, ''without extolling the perfection of the work achieved by the extended government commission put in place by Joseph Kabila'', feels that ''the systematic reappraisal of the work achieved is apparently exaggerated''. In any case, the paper highlights in a different article, ''any reassessment of the nominations of the territorial administration's players is groundless for the time being'', given that ''the International Committee to Support the Transition applauded the act of nominations'', describing it as a ''significant breakthrough'' in the DRC's transitional process. The paper concludes that it is now ''impossible to call to question what has already been approved by the International Community''.
The putting-in-place of the Territorial Administration has shattered the Political Opposition, says L'AVENIR. The paper indicates that the Political Opposition's component has issued two declarations disowning Vice-president Z'Ahidi Ngoma who reportedly facilitated the nominations of two personalities from his own political party, Forces du future, taking advantage of the quota given to the political opposition. The paper says that ''it is no longer quite sure that vice-president Z'Ahidi would manage to convene meetings of the different tendencies of the political opposition as it used to be in the past''. Following the above, the paper writes, he has ''dug his own grave'', and is therefore ''politically dead''.
Furthermore, LA TEMPETE DES TROPIQUES announces that Luanda and Kinshasa have ironed out their differences over the expulsions of Congolese nationals from Angola. The paper reports that both countries officials have been holding discussions since last Wednesday in Kinshasa with a view to ''normalising relations between both countries''. The meeting was also due ''to explore the means and ways to organise, as of now, the repatriation of foreigners in accordance with acceptable norms''.
On this subject, LA REFERENCE PLUS declares that both countries' delegates have reached an agreement over the procedures and modalities for the repatriation of Congolese nationals. ''With reference to the request of the Congolese government, Angola has given 45 days' grace to the Congolese party, as of 19 May 2004, to prepare itself to receive the returnees'', the paper writes, adding that when the grace period expires, Angolan authorities will notify Congolese authorities of the resumption of the forced repatriation operations.
In another development, L'OBSERVATEUR raises a letter addressed by Joseph Kabila to the four vice-presidents ''denouncing the reappearance of corruption and misappropriation of funds in the different government structures and institutions''. In the letter, the Head of State calls on the vice presidents to ''personally ensure that the above plagues, that would only hamper the reconstruction and development process of the DRC, are eradicated'', adds the paper.
LE PALMARES mentions '' heaps of protests'' sent to the Head of State. The paper, ''without extolling the perfection of the work achieved by the extended government commission put in place by Joseph Kabila'', feels that ''the systematic reappraisal of the work achieved is apparently exaggerated''. In any case, the paper highlights in a different article, ''any reassessment of the nominations of the territorial administration's players is groundless for the time being'', given that ''the International Committee to Support the Transition applauded the act of nominations'', describing it as a ''significant breakthrough'' in the DRC's transitional process. The paper concludes that it is now ''impossible to call to question what has already been approved by the International Community''.
The putting-in-place of the Territorial Administration has shattered the Political Opposition, says L'AVENIR. The paper indicates that the Political Opposition's component has issued two declarations disowning Vice-president Z'Ahidi Ngoma who reportedly facilitated the nominations of two personalities from his own political party, Forces du future, taking advantage of the quota given to the political opposition. The paper says that ''it is no longer quite sure that vice-president Z'Ahidi would manage to convene meetings of the different tendencies of the political opposition as it used to be in the past''. Following the above, the paper writes, he has ''dug his own grave'', and is therefore ''politically dead''.
Furthermore, LA TEMPETE DES TROPIQUES announces that Luanda and Kinshasa have ironed out their differences over the expulsions of Congolese nationals from Angola. The paper reports that both countries officials have been holding discussions since last Wednesday in Kinshasa with a view to ''normalising relations between both countries''. The meeting was also due ''to explore the means and ways to organise, as of now, the repatriation of foreigners in accordance with acceptable norms''.
On this subject, LA REFERENCE PLUS declares that both countries' delegates have reached an agreement over the procedures and modalities for the repatriation of Congolese nationals. ''With reference to the request of the Congolese government, Angola has given 45 days' grace to the Congolese party, as of 19 May 2004, to prepare itself to receive the returnees'', the paper writes, adding that when the grace period expires, Angolan authorities will notify Congolese authorities of the resumption of the forced repatriation operations.
In another development, L'OBSERVATEUR raises a letter addressed by Joseph Kabila to the four vice-presidents ''denouncing the reappearance of corruption and misappropriation of funds in the different government structures and institutions''. In the letter, the Head of State calls on the vice presidents to ''personally ensure that the above plagues, that would only hamper the reconstruction and development process of the DRC, are eradicated'', adds the paper.
