{UAH} Step aside, US envoy tells DRC leader Kabila
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Step aside, US envoy tells DRC leader Kabila
2014-06-06 08:44
President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila listens to proceedings during the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) in Kampala. (AFP)
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Several African leaders have sought to extend their rule by amending their constitutions, and speculation is growing that Kabila may seek a third term despite a two-term limit stipulated in Article 220 of DRC's national charter.
The president, who came to power after the 2003 murder of his father president Laurent Kabila and won his first elected term in a 2006 election, has not revealed his intentions. Government officials deny he plans to alter the constitution.
"Our strong advice is that there is a global election calendar with the presidential elections no later than the end of 2016, and [that there should be] no attempt to disregard the unamendable stipulation of article 220," US special envoy Russ Feingold told a news conference in the capital Kinshasa.
His comments echoed those of US Secretary of State John Kerry during a visit to DRC last month and came at the end of a regional tour with special envoys from the European Union, African Union and the United Nations.
Heavy criticism
Last month DRC's elections commission published details of local, municipal and urban elections which are due to take place in the second half of 2015, but a programme for a presidential vote is still pending.
"The local elections are expensive but are not required by the constitution," said Feingold. "Organising and financing these, but not the [presidential] elections, which are required by the constitution, is not a believable approach."
Feingold said holding elections was crucial for the continued development of DRC, a vast and disordered Central African nation where millions have been killed in various internal wars since the late 1990s, but has seen strong growth in recent years, particularly in its mining sector.
Kabila's win in the 2011 presidential election came under heavy criticism following reports of ballot-stuffing and violent intimidation of political opponents.
During his visit last month, Kerry pledged $30 million in U.S. aid to support elections as well as to finance recovery and reconstruction programs in Congo's conflict-ridden east. But a US official said Washington reserved the right to withhold funds if the elections process was not transparent and credible.
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"Even if Joseph Kony was killed, that would not necessarily be the end of the war in northern Uganda because Kony is no more than a ' spiritual' leader of the LRA. This quick fix, arm-chair solution seemed to be from the Kampala-based 'opinion leaders' who only know the war through newspapers".
" Until the legitimate grievances and the marginalization of northern Uganda's communities are addressed, LRA fighters remain a possible vehicle for the expression of northerners' frustrations".
"Kony may never sign a peace agreement. Whether or not he signs, however, is less relevant to avoiding new conflict in northern Uganda than ending marginalization policies and fulfilling promises by the Ugandan government."
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