In a speech delivered at a political rally held in Kinshasa, Kabund denounced what he described as a \u201cclimate of fear and repression\u201d under President Tshisekedi\u2019s leadership. He argued that the country could not move forward while key political figures remained in exile or were being systematically targeted by the state.<\/p>\n
This statement is particularly significant given the strained relationship Kabund has with both the ruling party and his former political allies. Once a close confidant of President Tshisekedi and former interim president of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), Kabund fell out with the administration and founded his own opposition movement, Alliance pour le Changement.<\/p>\n
Kabund also condemned the recent suspension of the People\u2019s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), founded by Joseph Kabila. The party, once the dominant force in Congolese politics, has seen its activities curtailed in several provinces amid allegations of inciting unrest.<\/p>\n
Kabund accused the government of using legal and administrative tactics to silence dissent, warning that this trend could undermine the democratic gains the country has made since the end of the civil war.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuppressing a political party is not a solution to political rivalry,\u201d Kabund declared. \u201cI call on the PPRD to stand firm and resist peacefully but resolutely. The opposition must not allow itself to be erased by a regime afraid of competition.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The political climate in the DRC has become increasingly tense as the country moves closer to the 2028 general elections. Several opposition leaders, including Mo\u00efse Katumbi, have reported harassment, legal threats, and travel restrictions. Kabund\u2019s call for unity among the opposition appears to be a strategic attempt to build a broader coalition against President Tshisekedi\u2019s government.<\/p>\n Observers say that while Kabund\u2019s rhetoric is provocative, it reflects a growing frustration among opposition figures who feel excluded from the political process and persecuted by the state apparatus.<\/p>\n The presidency has not yet responded to Kabund\u2019s comments, but government sources have previously denied allegations of political persecution, maintaining that all actions taken are in accordance with the law.<\/p>\n As the political stakes rise, the DRC faces mounting pressure to ensure a fair, open, and inclusive political environment. Whether Kabund\u2019s appeal will lead to real change remains to be seen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In a speech delivered at a political rally held in Kinshasa, Kabund denounced what he described as a \u201cclimate of fear and repression\u201d under President Tshisekedi\u2019s leadership. He argued that the country could not move forward while key political figures remained in exile or were being systematically targeted by the state. \u201cA nation that marginalizes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17910,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"float","share_float_style":"share-normal","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"1","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"0","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":"Kinshasa, April 2025 \u2014 Jean-Marc Kabund, former Vice President of the National Assembly and one of the most vocal critics of President F\u00e9lix Tshisekedi, has called for the unconditional return of all political exiles to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Among the names he cited were former President Joseph Kabila and opposition leader Mo\u00efse Katumbi, both of whom have faced increasing pressure from the current government."},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_review":[],"enable_review":"","type":"percentage","name":"","summary":"","brand":"","sku":"","good":[],"bad":[],"score_override":"","override_value":"","rating":[],"price":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"jnews_post_split":{"post_split":[{"template":"1","tag":"h2","numbering":"asc","mode":"normal","first":"0","enable_toc":"0","toc_type":"normal"}]},"footnotes":""},"categories":[5314,5311,5312,5318],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-international","category-justice","category-society"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17909"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17909\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17911,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17909\/revisions\/17911"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17910"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}