Having treated the DR Congo’s vast mineral wealth as if it were his personal property, Congolese ruler Felix Tshisekedi is now turning to foreign guns (once again) to protect his grip on power.
Now Tshisekedi has struck a deal with Erik Dean Prince, the American mercenary and founder of the notorious Blackwater. Under this arrangement, Prince is recruiting Colombian ex-soldiers, veterans of brutal conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, and elsewhere, to serve in DRC.
These mercenaries are expected to be paid US$ 4,300 a month. They are paid not to protect civilians; not to bring stability or build peace, but to serve the greed and narrow political ambitions of Tshilombo, a fellow that’s increasingly out of touch with reality.
This isn’t Tshisekedi’s first foray into outsourcing mercenaries, as everyone knows.
He previously brought in Romanian mercenaries to support his coalition against the M23 movement. That ended in humiliation, with the foreign forces driven from eastern Congo after suffering big losses.
Now, with his rule marred by accusations of corruption and electoral theft, Tshisekedi is more concerned with looting what remains of the country’s wealth than leading with integrity. His priority is protection of his personal power, privilege, and right to plunder the country’s resources, at all costs.
DRC has endured decades of conflict, fueled by the ruthless scramble for minerals, entrenched ethnic rivalries, and ceaseless foreign meddling. Tshisekedi’s latest move only deepens those wounds. It reinforces every fracture that has kept the country bleeding.
It’s high time this tyrant were overthrown.
ellenkampire