Lubumbashi, 13 June, 2023 / 9:56 pm (ACI Africa).
The natives of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) do not “sufficiently benefit” from the country’s immense wealth, the Catholic Archbishop of Lubumbashi in the Central African nation has said.
Archbishop Fulgence Muteba Mugalu who was speaking during the conclusion of DRC’s third National Eucharistic Congress that his Metropolitan See hosted cautioned the Congolese people against despair amid challenging situations of their lives.
“The Congolese people, a tiny fraction of whom are taking part in this closing Eucharist of our third national congress, live on a territory endowed with immense natural wealth which, unfortunately, does not sufficiently benefit them,” Archbishop Muteba said during the Sunday, June 11 closing Mass that was held at the TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi.
The Congolese Archbishop continued, “Whether we're talking about copper and cobalt in Katanga, diamonds in the Kasai, timber in the Equatorial or customs revenues from the 9 countries around us, the dividends of this immense wealth are being monopolized by the rare gluttony of a ruling elite and unscrupulous multinationals while the Congolese people who own it, languish in poverty.”
He went on to decry the lavish lifestyle of a section of politicians in the Central African nation amid the misery of ordinary people, which the Catholic Archbishop said continues to worsen amid a "general indifference of the managers of public affairs.”
