The army has issued a statement following several rumors, reports and speculation about the arrest of several officers, including General Christian Tshiwewe, accused of collaborating with the former head of state, Joseph Kabila, to destabilize Kinshasa. Although the army spokesman did not mention his case, he brushed aside rumors of unfounded arrests by referring to fake news.

“For some time, there have been a lot of rumors and fake news,” said General Sylvain Ekenge, spokesman for the FARDC responding to questions from a journalist on national television.

“I am very surprised by these rumors on social networks. I came here as a free man”, said Lieutenant General Jean-Claude Kifwa, one of the alleged detainees.

The spokesman for the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo has also announced on Friday that he will hold a press briefing on Saturday 12 July to discuss the news of the arrest of generals and senior officers, with the aim of clarifying the situation and providing official details. But this briefing didn’t happen finally. Officially, the press conference will be organized very soon but sources near this topic said that the army is still investigating on its many superior officers including Christian Tshiwewe, the former Chef of the army.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma