Early this week, I was in the municipality of Bandalungwa, gathering the stories of the residents of a compound visited by some armed men in uniform who took with them the jewellery, money and cell phones. The next day I was in the municipality of Selembao, with another family who had a similar story to tell.
One armed man in uniform broke into the house. He shot a woman at point-blank range, in the abdomen. While she was lying on the ground, the gangster carefully removed the gold chain she was wearing on her neck. He then ran away, taking with him the money and all the family’s cell phones. The wounded lady is treated at the university hospital of Kinshasa.
With this resurgence of armed robberies near the end-of-year festivities, there is ample reason to ask questions: Who are these gangsters and how can we explain that they operate in uniform ?
These gangsters generally operate at night, taking advantage of the dark resulting from power shortages. Curiously enough, when the victims call the police for help, they come after at least two hours, to review the damage and count the wounded and the dead.
The Congolese police, a champion when it comes to imposing repression on demonstrations, has less power when it comes to intervening in emergencies in a timely fashion. It’s the sad truth, but how can we rely on police officers who feel no motivation at all, because they are underpaid and, in a good number of cases, are the perpetrators of these criminal acts?
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