DR Congo opposition leader calls for protests after negotiation failure

A section of opposition leaders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are preparing to respond to what they consider as an attempt by the presidential majority to block the December 31 peace agreement.

Félix Tshisekedi, who heads the gathering, has called for ghost towns on April 3, to be followed by a general strike on April 5 and later a series of protests from the 10th of April.

The protests are expected to showcase the discontent of the opposition in the face of the failure of political negotiations undertaken by the Catholic Church in the DRC which was boycotted by the leaders at the start of this week.

On Wednesday, Félix Tshisekedi sent a letter to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres to inform him about the situation.

In his letter, the son of the deceased leader of Congo’s opposition Etienne Tshisekedi, noted that the presidential majority is seeking ways to delay the presidential election.

Latest developments in the political situation in DR Congo, suggest that the probability of holding the presidential elections in 2017, as provided for in the agreement are becoming slim.

Talks always stalled on key points of negotiations especially about the appointment of a prime minister from the opposition block.