Transitional government officials designated by the two principal former rebel movements in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) took their oath of office on Thursday in the capital, Kinshasa, after a modification was made in the pledge of allegiance.
Fourteen ministers and eight vice ministers from the two groups — the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD-Goma) and the Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC) — had refused to take the oath of office on Friday because it required a pledge of allegiance to President Joseph Kabila, but not to the institutions and laws of the country.
“We are no longer in the era of the personalisation of power as has been reflected in the text of the oath,” the MLC’s Jose Endundo, minister of public works designate, said at the time.
“We do not accept to swear allegiance to President Kabila, but rather to the institutions and the laws of the country.”
According to Joseph Mudumbi, a transitional government minister from RCD-Goma, the revised text included a pledge of allegiance not only to Kabila, but to the government and the laws of the country.
“We swore our allegiance in a spirit of national reconciliation, of moving forward,” he said.
“We now feel that we can commit ourselves to working together.”
Ministers and vice ministers from all other parties to a national power-sharing accord, including the unarmed political opposition and civil society, took the oath of office on Friday, promising to be loyal to Kabila. However, all sides agreed that the difference in oaths would in no way hinder the work of the two-year transitional government, which is due to hold its first meeting on Friday.
“The difference in the texts is a false problem,” Mudumbi said. “It is not the oath that is going to put things right in this country. The difference in oaths is inconsequential.”
“It was only a matter of a small change in text, and we all agreed to be good sports and go along with it since it is high time we got down to work,” said Anseleme Enurungu, environment minister from the Mayi-Mayi militia who swore the oath of office on Friday.
“We are in the midst of an extraordinary period.”
“Besides,” he added, “in swearing allegiance to the government and institutions of the country, they also swore allegiance to the head of state, who is also the head of government.” – Irin