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DRC President Stays On After Mandate Expires

by VOA News

   Gunfire could be heard in Congo's capital, Kinshasa, early Tuesday
   after the mandate for President Joseph Kabila passed without the
   president stepping down and with no elections in sight.

   Kabila's mandate ended at midnight Monday following his two terms in
   office. A presidential adviser, Barnabe Kikaya, said it was
   unconstitutional to demand that Kabila leave office at midnight, and
   said he will continue to be president in the morning.

   Congo's constitutional court has ruled that Kabila can remain in power
   until new elections are held.

   A Congolese opposition party supporter displays a red card against
   President Joseph Kabila in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo Dec.
   19, 2016.

   Protests take place

   Residents in some parts of the capital, Kinshasa, blew whistles at
   midnight to signal that it was time for Kabila to leave office. Gunfire
   also could be heard in several districts.

   Earlier Monday, protests took place in several neighborhoods in
   Kinshasa, despite a ban on demonstrations and a large military presence
   out in force. Witnesses say police fired tear gas to disperse the
   protesters.

   "The constitution clearly states that the president remains in his
   position until his successor is elected by the people of the Congo, not
   by a loud and insistent mob," Kikaya said.

   Congolese policemen sit on a monument at the Central Station, in Gombe,
   Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dec. 19, 2016.

   Quiet capital

   Much of the capital was deserted Monday, with shops closed and people
   staying home because of fears of violence.

   In the eastern city of Goma, human rights groups say dozens of
   protesters were arrested.

   Congo's ruling party has proposed that elections be held in April 2018.
   However, opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi has demanded that the vote
   take place in 2017.

   Kabila in charge since 2001

   The government says elections scheduled for this November had to be
   postponed because of logistical and financial challenges.

   Kabila has been president of the DRC since his father was assassinated
   in 2001. He won elections in 2006 and 2011 in polls the opposition
   claims were rigged. He is barred by the constitution from seeking a
   third term.

   Congo has never had a peaceful transfer of power since independence
   from Belgium in 1960. Observers fear the current political crisis could
   trigger a repeat of civil wars that killed millions of people between
   1996 and 2003.