{Joseph Mukungubila Mutombo was questioning \u2013 and embellishing \u2013 his identity long before he shot into the international spotlight on Monday, when intruders disrupted a live TV show, proclaiming to be followers of “Gideon Mukungubila”.}<\/p>\n
\u201cGideon\u201d is just one of several monikers associated with the former soldier-turned Congolese presidential candidate-turned-televangelist-turned-prophet. <\/p>\n
These include \u201cthe prophet of the eternal\u201d or \u201cPaul Joseph Mukungubila\u201d or sometimes simply, \u201cprophet Mukungubila\u201d.<\/p>\n
The self-proclaimed prophet\u2019s Monday morning rise to fame was captured live on Congolese state broadcaster RTNC, when a group of men stormed onto the set of \u201cLe Panier,\u201d or \u201cThe Breadbasket\u201d show.<\/p>\n
Amid scenes of utter confusion, Le Panier\u2019s two presenters were taken hostage as men armed with machetes and sticks shouted orders in the local Lingala language, mobile phones rang, and at one stage, a vuvuzela incongruously appeared on the set. Then the state TV service was abruptly cut.<\/p>\n
But before the transmission stopped, a voice off-camera proclaimed in Lingala, \u201cGideon Mukungubila has come to free you from the slavery of the Rwandan\u201d. Congo\u2019s President Joseph Kabila is often derisively referred to as \u201cthe Rwandan\u201d by his opponents \u2013 a term that underscores the deep animosity among many Congolese citizens against their country\u2019s tiny, eastern neighbour\u2019s meddling in their insecure, but resource-rich homeland. <\/p>\n
As the international community struggled to assess the situation in the troubled African nation, news organisations across the world were scrambling for information about the mysterious \u201cprophet\u201d who appeared to be at the centre of the Congo\u2019s latest crisis.<\/p>\n
A rebirth timed to enhance a messianic, nationalist appeal<\/p>\n
Questions about the identity and intent of Mukungubila have been circulating ever since the former soldier embraced his new persona as a man of God.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is Paul Mukungubila: God or Christ?\u201d read an undated communiqu\u00e9 issued by his \u201cMinistry of Restoration from Black Africa\u201d. The answer provided by the statement was rambling and disconcerting: \u201cPaul Mukungubila is the prophet of God, by whom the creator is speaking to us on this world today on this last stage Christ ministry after the saint land had been profaned by unbelievers.\u201d [sic]<\/p>\n
An enigmatic figure, Mukungubila\u2019s date of birth is listed as December 26, 1947, in an English language statement by his ministry. In a French language video posted on his official website, Mukungubila\u2019s spiritual date of birth is said to be 1959 \u2013 a year before Congolese independence \u2013 in a \u201crebirth\u201d obviously timed to enhance his messianic and nationalistic appeal. <\/p>\n
God and patriotism appear to be Mukungubila\u2019s twin populist themes in a vast, weak nation that has been open to manipulation by smaller, stronger neighbouring states since the 1997 ouster of longtime Congolese autocrat Mobutu Sese Seko.<\/p>\n
Mobutu was ousted by Laurent Kabila \u2013 the current president\u2019s father \u2013 with the help of Rwandan-backed troops. Relations between Congo and Rwanda have been strained, with the two countries twice going to war. <\/p>\n
Congolese-Rwandan relations nosedived again this year, when the UN accused Rwandan President Paul Kagame of supporting M23 rebels \u2013 comprised of mostly ethnic Tutsis, like Rwanda\u2019s leaders \u2013 in eastern Congo. <\/p>\n
In November, Congolese soldiers backed by UN troops finally defeated the M23 and earlier this month, the Congolese government signed a peace deal with the rebel leadership in Kenya.<\/p>\n
A long-shot presidential candidate <\/p>\n
Mukungubila, who hails from the southeastern Katanga province, has vocally opposed the peace negotiations. <\/p>\n
In an open letter released on December 5, Mukungubila criticised what he called Kabila\u2019s soft stance on the M23 rebels. \u201cImagine negotiating and signing an agreement with a defeated M23 that no longer exists while emphasising integration \u2013 it\u2019s simply unacceptable. These are people who massacred, who murdered Congolese people, and we know very well that they are Rwandans,\u201d said the statement.<\/p>\n
“Gideon Mukungubila is known in Kinshasa as a prophet of God who has always condemned and launched verbal attacks against the government,\u201d explained Adam Shemisi, a Congolese journalist, in an interview with FRANCE 24. \u201cHe denounces everyone in power. We wonder how he was able to mobilise this militia that managed to take journalists hostage. ”<\/p>\n
The televangelist\u2019s opposition to Kabila took an overtly political form when he ran for president in the 2006 Congolese election. <\/p>\n
But as an independent in a race with 33 registered candidates, Mukungubila was not considered a frontrunner. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe ran for president in 2006, which does not mean he was a serious contender for the presidency,\u201d said US journalist Philip Gourevitch in an interview with FRANCE 24\u2019s sister station, RFI. \u201cHe\u2019s not somebody who has left a visible track as a national figure until his name popped up [on Monday] to the great surprise of everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mukungubila admits followers involvement<\/p>\n
Even in a country that\u2019s no stranger to insecurity, Monday\u2019s incident in the heart of the capital, which killed around 40 people, caught observers off-guard. By noon, a Congolese army spokesman said there had been clashes between security forces and gunmen in the Katanga provincial capital of Lubumbashi and the death toll had mounted to more than 70.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende advised caution over reports holding Mukungubila or his supporters responsible for the attacks.<\/p>\n
“The attackers presented themselves as supporters of Mukungubila. We are checking because this could be an attempt to fool us,” said Mende.<\/p>\n
But in a phone interview with FRANCE 24 later Monday, Mukungubila confirmed that some of his followers were among the attackers. He insisted, however, that the incidents were a spontaneous reaction to attacks against his congregants over the weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that using the word ‘assailant’ is going too far. I was the one who was attacked. Seeing that, my brothers\u2026were upset. It wasn’t just in Kinshasa that they attacked. They took the airport. In [the central Congolese city of] Kissangani, they entered the town,\u201d said Mukungubila.<\/p>\n
From prophet to trouble-maker<\/p>\n
Monday\u2019s incidents came a day after Gen. John Numbi, the country\u2019s top cop, was suspended and replaced by Gen. Charles Bisengimana, an ethnic Tutsi, sparking criticism in some Congolese circles over the perceived over-representation of Tutsis in senior security positions. Local media reports referred to the new police chief as a \u201cRwandophone\u201d in a country where anti-Rwanda sentiment runs high.<\/p>\n
In a statement published on Facebook, officials at the Ministry of Restoration from Black Africa said the latest unrest started on Sunday evening in Lubumbashi, when \u201cchildren\u201d distributing leaflets of Mukungubila\u2019s message that Congo could not be ruled by \u201ca foreigner\u201d were arrested.<\/p>\n
The arrests were followed by attacks against top Ministry of Restoration from Black Africa supporters, the statement added, which in turn fuelled Monday\u2019s attacks.<\/p>\n
Speaking to FRANCE 24 on Monday evening, Mukungubila, the “prophet of god”, suggested that the latest events might see his eventful life take yet another turn.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will continue like that,\u201d Mukungubila told FRANCE 24. \u201cIt’s not normal. We are going to show what we are capable of.\u201d<\/p>\n
France 24<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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