President Felix Tshisekedi has been slow to put in place his new government. In an interview with APA, his compatriot Ivan Vangu Ngimbi, a lecturer at the Faculty of Social, Political and Administrative Sciences of the University of Kinshasa, deciphered the situation.
President Tshisekedi waited almost two months after the appointment of Prime Minister Sama Lukonde Kyenge to form a new government. How do you explain that?
Several factors can justify this delay which had become a long wait for the Congolese. First of all, there is the relative ease with which the president took over the parliamentary majority of his predecessor (Joseph Kabila). It is also amplified by the DNA of the Congolese political class, whose transhumance and inconstancy are almost second nature. This shift in the majority has complicated the arbitration process, as defectors have arrived with hidden agendas that culminate in the quest for positions.
The need to renew the political class, dictated by popular pressure, with the result that the old guard, often the bosses of political parties, who consider themselves to be candidates for ministerial posts, have been pushed out of the game, may also explain this delay. The same observation can be made with individual professional ambitions in the Congolese socio-political context where, for more than three decades, only politics has become the lucrative activity par excellence and the ideal reason for rapid enrichment without cause.
The third point of analysis is the lack of political base of the Prime Minister, who is shuffled between several decision-making centres, combined with the President’s deliberate desire to have a government under control, not to mention the subterranean influence of the First Lady who demanded a significant quota of women. All these factors weighed heavily and justified the delay, which triggered a legitimate impatience on the part of the Congolese population faced with a feeling of state vacuum.
This so-called “Sacred Union” government is composed of 57 members, ten less than the previous team. What makes it special?
The main characteristic of this government is the rejuvenation and renewal of the figures, the vast majority of whom are making their ministerial debut. In addition, there is a significant number of women, with a rate of almost 30 percent. This is a first for a very long time.
But with such a large number of ministers, do you think that the government will be effective two years before the presidential election?
No one can predict, at this stage, the chances of success of this government because of both the political context (fragmented) likely to experience aftershocks as in every earthquake episode. Economically, the coffers are empty. Socially, the expectations of the population are numerous, not forgetting the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Someone rightly said that even the profiles of ministers no longer interest us, only the results will count from now on. This means that for the ordinary Congolese, there is a balance between hope and concern. It is up to the government to clear up the equivocation through the expected results.
What will be the priorities of the new government?
It may make you smile but everything is a priority. But more seriously, security, economic and social issues will be at the forefront. The situation remains explosive in the east of the country and the government must restore the authority of the state. In addition, there is a need to reconsolidate national unity, which has been undermined by tribal and separatist attacks. The coffers are empty and purchasing power has plummeted. Industrial production is at low ebb, the infrastructure, especially roads, is in a pitiful state, the health and education systems are mediocre, etc. In short, there is a lot to be done and it will take more than two years for the results to be tangible. This will bring us back to 2023, the year in which the current tenant of the State House will end his mandate.
ODL/te/id/lb/abj/APA