For the national coordinator of the Synergy of Citizen Election Observation Missions in the DRC (SYMOCEL), Luc Lutala, it’s the electoral commission that is mainly responsible, because the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) has completely failed in its planning, he blurted out during a press briefing held last Thursday in Kinshasa.

"The position of Symocel has always been clear and consistent from the outset. The Independent National Electoral Commission has failed in the planning process. During this planning, the Independent National Electoral Commission must produce the tools of its planning: first, the electoral calendar; secondly, the budget; thirdly, the disbursement plan agreed between the CENI and the government. Today, the question of funding, for Symocel, is a red herring, more or less resembling a Pandora's box and a fertile field."

He added: "The CENI tells us that it does not have the means but does not specify how much it expects from the government to complete its operations. Secondly, although the CENI has been urged to publish the disbursement plan agreed with the government, it has never done so. For Symocel, all the financial problems encountered by the CENI are due to the fact that it has never taken into account the recommendations of the stakeholders and has never sought to assert itself as a partner to the government, with which it must define the conditions for managing the electoral process. The CENI is solely responsible for the delays and errors resulting from the lack of funding."

It is appropriate to note that the revised electoral calendar is awaiting a new version due to financial difficulties, with senatorial elections scheduled for March 31, 2024, while those for governors and deputy governors will take place a week later, on April 7, 2024.

Gisèle Mbuyi