Ex-DR Congo Prime Minister Sentenced to 10 Years of Forced Labour for Embezzlement

Former Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo has been handed a 10-year sentence of forced labour by the Constitutional Court after being found guilty of embezzling nearly $245 million in public funds. The ruling also implicated Deogratias Mutombo, the former governor of the country’s central bank, who received a five-year forced labour sentence.

According to Reuters, Matata’s legal team condemned the decision as unjust and politically driven. Both men have been barred from holding public office for five years following the completion of their sentences, as reported by the AFP news agency.

The case revolves around financial misappropriation linked to the Bukanga-Lonzo Agro-Industrial Park project, a large-scale agricultural initiative meant to address widespread food insecurity in the DRC. The park was envisioned as a transformative effort to create 22,000 jobs and alleviate hunger for the country’s 28 million people facing food shortages. However, auditors uncovered massive fraud during a 2020 investigation by the Inspectorate General of Finance.

The Bukanga-Lonzo project was once touted as one of Africa's most ambitious agricultural ventures. Backed by the African Development Bank Group, it was designed to support the DRC’s long-term food strategy. Instead, it became a symbol of systemic corruption.

Matata served as prime minister from 2012 to 2016 under President Joseph Kabila. Prior to that, he was the finance minister, earning praise from the International Monetary Fund for stabilizing the economy. He now leads the Leadership and Governance for Development (LGD) party.

Matata was briefly a presidential challenger to incumbent President Félix Tshisekedi in the 2023 election but later withdrew from the race. He has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, maintaining his innocence throughout the investigation and trial.

Deogratias Mutombo, the former central bank chief, has not publicly responded to the court’s verdict.

Under DRC law, forced labour is permitted as a criminal sentence if ordered by the judiciary, according to the U.S. State Department.

The sentencing marks a significant development in the DRC’s ongoing battle with corruption, particularly as the nation continues to grapple with conflict and humanitarian crises in the wake of decades of instability since the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Source: BBC