The Catholic Church, through the National Episcopal Conference of the Congo (CENCO), remains adamant on the issue of constitutional reform. It considers that, to date, there is neither a necessity, nor an opportunity, nor an urgency justifying an amendment to the Republic’s Constitution.

This position was reaffirmed on Saturday in Kinshasa by the Secretary-General of CENCO, Bishop Donatien Nshole, during a press conference on the country’s current political and institutional situation.

The prelate recalled that CENCO had undertaken a series of consultations with the country’s various political forces, notably the components of the presidential majority as well as the opposition parties, in order to gather their views on the debate surrounding a possible constitutional revision. Following these discussions, the Congolese episcopate states that it has found no sufficiently convincing argument to justify amending the Constitution.

Bishop Donatien Nshole also called on President Félix Tshisekedi to remain faithful to the oath he swore before the nation and before God at his inauguration. In his view, honoring this commitment is a moral and institutional imperative for the country’s stability. Any initiative aimed at undermining the current constitutional order would engage the personal and historical responsibility of the Head of State, he warned.

CENCO has also called on the international community to remain vigilant regarding developments in the political situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to ensure that constitutional principles are upheld.

Finally, the Catholic bishops are calling on religious leaders to step up efforts to raise awareness amongst the faithful regarding the importance of preserving the constitutional order. They also announced that more detailed guidance will be issued in the coming days regarding the steps to be taken to support this civic mobilization

Written by Noé KALEMEKO

Caption: Priest Donatien Nshole. Photo by Cenco