José Makila blames Tshisekedi for M23’s return to Kinshasa, not Kabila
During a live Space discussion on Thursday, opposition figure and former deputy prime minister José Makila Sumanda delivered a series of firm positions on the security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and the role of former president Joseph Kabila.
Regarding Kabila’s presence in areas under M23 control, Makila dismissed accusations of collusion between the ex-head of state and the rebel movement. “Nobody from M23 ensured Kabila’s protection,” he stated, emphasizing that the entire population of North and South Kivu living under M23 administration is subject to the same local law enforcement forces.
In his view, Kabila only “defended the integrity of the territory” while in power, without any personal feud with rebel leaders Makenga or Nanga. “Now he no longer has that responsibility. What are you condemning him for?” Makila asked.
The opposition figure also turned the tables on President Félix Tshisekedi, holding him responsible for the resurgence of M23 on the Congolese scene. “It is not Kabila who brought M23 back to Kinshasa; it is Tshisekedi,” he argued, asserting that the current head of state normalized relations with the movement, making any blame of his predecessor inconsistent.
On the nature of the conflict itself, Makila introduced a distinction he considers fundamental: that between a declared inter-state war and an externally supported rebellion. Rejecting comparisons with the Russia-Ukraine war, he said that to his knowledge, the DRC is not formally at war with Rwanda. “We have Sukhoi jets, we have drones. Why aren’t those drones and Sukhoi jets bombing Rwanda?” he questioned, highlighting the absence of direct strikes on Rwandan territory as proof that it is not a state-to-state conflict.
Cautious on military matters, Makila nonetheless claimed a strictly political reading of these events. “I am one hundred percent political. I tell you what I know politically,” he concluded, refusing to be drawn onto ground he considers not his own.
