US embassy cable - 05KINSHASA1692

C O N F I D E N T I A L KINSHASA 001692 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, ECON, CG 
SUBJECT: REOPENING OLD DEBATES 
 
Classified By: PolCouns MSanderson, reasons 1.4 b/d. 
 
1. (C)  The first week of the new Parliamentary session was 
disrupted by a debate on whether sitting Parliamentarians who 
have been named to posts on parastatal companies should be 
allowed to occupy double positions (and receive double 
salaries).  National Assembly President Olivier Kamitatu told 
PolCouns October 9 that it currently appears that individuals 
will have to decide to resign one position or the other, 
i.e., quit the Parliament or quit the parastatals.  The 
debate is particularly significant because among those 
affected are the party heads in the Assembly of the RCD 
(Moise Nyarangabo) and MLC (Thomas Luhaka).  Nyarangabo 
earlier told the Ambassador that if forced to choose, the 
Parliamentary seat was more important, and he reportedly has 
sent a letter to Kamitatu September 30 renouncing his 
parastatal position in favor of continuing in the Assembly. 
Luhaka, however, told PolCouns October 8 that he has 
instructed the MLC Parliamentary group (with the approval of 
party president Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba) to insist 
that the question be reviewed by the Supreme Court, since the 
Parliament does not have authority to rule on position 
appointments for the parastatals.  Kamitatu said that over 50 
members of the National Assembly are affected by the debate. 
 
2. (C)  Comment:  Coincidentally, only President Kabila's 
party, the PPRD, is not affected by this question -- which 
one of their members introduced for debate.  The other three 
groups (RCD, MLC and civil society) all had named leading 
members of the National Assembly to directorial positions on 
various parastatals.  It looks like a win-win for the PPRD, 
albeit a dangerous one.  On the one hand, they hope to force 
some of their major opponents (such as Luhaka and Nyarangabo) 
out of Parliament.  On the other hand, they are forcing a 
reopening of the question of how the parastatals are divided. 
 The reason this is a dangerous game, however, is that both 
of these outcomes carry with them the risk of seriously 
impeding government activity at a time when time is critical. 
 While most of the Parliamentarians almost certainly will be 
instructed by their party leaders to give up the parastatal 
positions (thereby ensuring that Parliament can continue its 
work pending a definitive reading), both the MLC and RCD will 
be hostile participants in the process, at least in the short 
term. If the question of parastatal division really does need 
to be reopened (because of the inability of the RCD, MLC and 
civil society to name other candidates in whom they repose 
confidence), the acrimonious debate could affect electoral 
preparations. 
MEECE