Moise Katumbi Chapwe says President Joseph Kabila is running the Democratic Republic of Congo like a pilotless plane and a family boutique.
Kabila running DR Congo like a pilotless plane, family boutique – Katumbi
The TP Mazembe bankroller said the country was a total mess because Kabila was bent on hanging on to power against the constitution and against the will of the people.
In a Facebook interview with the New York Times journalist, Nicholas Kristof, Katumbi accused the President of being corrupt, power drunk and using illegal methods to stay in power and presiding over a government of terror.
“Since Kabila has been in office, over 3 million people have been killed in eastern Congo and we can’t continue with somebody, – it’s like a 747 (aircraft) with no pilot, he is going to kill everyone, so today in the Congo, there is no pilot,” Katumbi said.
He reiterated his position that he will stand in elections basing his abilities on his time as governor of mineral rich Katanga province.
“If I win the elections, I think I’m going to be a good captain like I was in the Katanga province … not to run the country like President Kabila is running it, like his own boutique with his family. Because as you can see with all the reports that you can see and read in the media, it is a shame for a Congo which I like to make a better Congo,” he stressed.
According to a Bloomberg report published in December 2016, the family of President Joseph Kabila reportedly flourished by owning at least 70 companies.
The scope the Kabila empire became visible after Congolese regulators computerized and made corporate and government records publicly available.
The report, which included a diagram showing a network of names and companies linked to the President’s family, said the family also has dozens of joint ventures and shell corporations through which it holds stakes to varying degrees in all manner of industries.
At least 70 companies owned by family of DRC's President Kabila – Bloomberg report pic.twitter.com/gd9qLIorGY— Ismail Akwei (@akweiakwei) December 15, 2016
Kabila came into power in 2001 when he was 29 years old after his father, Laurent Kabila, who served as president since 1997 was assassinated by his own bodyguard.
Kabila was required by constitutional term limits to step down when his second mandate ended in December 2016 but a constitutional court ruled that he can stay on until a new successor is elected.
Intervention by the Catholic Church secured a deal that allows for polls to be held this year but the elections body has said it is not possible for polls to hold this year. Opposition continues to call for protests calling for Kabila to step down and allow for polls to be held.