Archbishop in DR Congo Faults President, Underscores Neutrality of Catholic Church

The Congolese Archbishop continued, “The Church isn't siding with anyone. All it does is defend the common good, evangelical values, justice, the law, democratic principles, and above all, the inalienable dignity of the human person.”

He added that as members of the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO), “We don't play politics, but we are committed to the ethics of politics for the good of our country and its most vulnerable inhabitants.”

Archbishop Muteba said that CENCO members make proposals “but do not impose, even if the moral authority it enjoys justifies listening to and respecting them.”

On June 22, Catholic Bishops in DRC called on the country’s electorate to prioritize the “competence and moral integrity” of political candidates they are to elect during the December general elections.

CENCO members also denounced persistent violence in the Eastern part of the country and the emergence of new groups of militia.  

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Earlier, on June 11, Archbishop Muteba decried the lavish lifestyle of a section of politicians in the Central African nation amid the misery of ordinary people.

In the interview with Jeune Afrique reported June 28, Archbishop Muteba reflected on the General elections in DRC scheduled for December 20.

He said, “There's the refusal to carry out a real audit of the electoral register, the lack of consultation between the parties involved in the electoral process, the lack of consensus on the voters' lists and the mapping of polling stations, the refusal to deploy our observers and the candidates' witnesses.”

The 60-year-old Catholic Archbishop who started his Episcopal Ministry in July 2005 as Bishop of DRC’s Kilwa-Kasenga Diocese added, “If the authorities continue to turn a deaf ear and persist in forcing the issue, we will feel obliged to make a solemn statement on the credibility of the current process.”

The Congolese Catholic Archbishop called upon the President of DRC to “play a frank and sincere democratic game, respecting the fundamental principles of the rule of law, and organize free, credible, transparent and inclusive elections.”