Six opposition candidates in the upcoming 2023 General Elections have announced they will jointly file a complaint in the Court of Cassation against Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) President Dénis Kadima Kazadi and Interior Security Minister Peter Kazadi.
At joint press conference held on Thursday, the opposition candidates Martin Fayulu, Denis Mukwege, Théodore Ngoy, Jean-Claude Baende, Nkema Liloo and Floribert Anzuluni cited the CENI President and the Interior Minister for “culpable abstention”.
The opposition candidates have bemoaned the failure by Kadima and Kazadi to fulfill their duties towards voter identification and security respectively ahead of the elections set for 20 December, 2023.
“We don’t know who our voter is. We go to elections without knowing the real number of voters,
“80% of voter cards are illegible because they were thermally printed. This means that voters were deliberately given cards that fade” one of the opposition candidates, Théodore Ngoy said.
Ngoy also raised concerns over the laxity by the Minister in charge of Interior Security to provide opposition candidates with security as stipulated by the law even after the official opening of campaigns.
“Until now, Peter Kazadi has not provided each candidate with the 25 police officers required by law. We note that Félix Tshisekedi is leading his campaign protected by the Republican Guard, when he should be protected by the police.”
The candidates indicated that this procedure could lead to the preventive detention of Peter Kazadi and Denis Kadima.
“We want the public prosecutor at the court of cassation to hear Peter Kazadi and Denis Kadima blatantly. We can well place both in preventive detention, hear them and bring them before the competent judge to correct this process,” Ngoy added.
