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DRC: President Kabila declares his wealth KINSHASA, 29 August (IRIN) - President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) submitted to parliament on Thursday a declaration of his wealth, in accordance with the national transition constitution that came out of the inter-Congolese peace and reconciliation dialogue. "It was a written declaration of all his belongings in a sealed envelope," Raphael Luhulu, National Assembly special rapporteur and formerly of the Mayi-Mayi militia movement, told IRIN. Speaking after the parliamentary session, National Assembly President Olivier Kamitatu, of the Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC) former rebel movement, which is now part of the transitional government, said: "The Head of State has blazed a trail that all other members of the executive must now follow in order to comply with the transitional constitution." Kamitatu said the contents of Kabila's declaration would be made known only to members of the National Assembly, unless disclosure of the information to anyone else was necessary. "It is not about making [Kabila's] wealth known to all, but rather a matter of honour to have the information in place should need of disclosure arise," Kamitatu said. All parties to the inter-Congolese dialogue - namely the former Kinshasa government, the unarmed political opposition, civil society, Mayi-Mayi militias and former rebel movements - agreed that members of the transitional government must submit a written declaration of their wealth. "This is the result of the wisdom of the representatives to the inter-Congolese dialogue," said Jean-Pierre Lola Kisanga, spokesman of the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD-Goma) former rebel movement, which is now part of the transitional government. "All members of the transitional government are to comply with this demand so that we can avoid the kind of illegal personal enrichment that this country has experienced in the past," he added. All members of the new government have vowed to submit their declarations of wealth. "In the event that suspicion arises about someone's inexplicable enrichment ... these envelope can be opened and their contents made known to the National Assembly to help determine if the wealth was obtained legally," Kamitatu added. "Otherwise, the envelopes will remained sealed. It is a patriotic gesture." During the parliamentary session, Kabila presented to the National Assembly and the Senate the members selected for five institutions intended to support the newly-inaugurated two-year transitional government - namely, a national human rights observatory; a high authority for media; a truth and reconciliation commission; and national elections council; and a commission for ethics and the fight against corruption, as called for by the inter-Congolese dialogue. The institutions were to have been inaugurated on Monday, which was postponed until Thursday, and then postponed indefinitely until necessary laws regarding their operation could be put in place. "We must first adopt certain laws allowing these bodies to function," Pierre Marini Bodho, the Senate president, said. |
