Less than 30% of the Congolese interviewed claim now to have a good opinion of the Republic’s President. Published on March 24^th by these the organizations, the report “Year 3 of Tshisekedi: the end of the “grace”?, reveals the popular mistrust vis-à-vis of political representatives, rulers and opponents included.

The decline in President Tshisekedi's popularity rating, however, has not benefited his potential competitors in the next presidential election expected at the end of 2023. This disappointment also spreads towards almost all the institutions of the country. Nearly a year after his inauguration, the government of Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde lost, for its part, 20% of favorable opinions.

With regard to the National Assembly, the "survey shows a worrying trend in the perception of the executive control by the legislative power: more than 65% of respondents believe that the control of the government by national deputies is 'not at all effective' or 'non-existent'. This trend calls into question the ability of the lower house to fully play its role as a check on the executive power,” said Joshua Walker, GEC program director.

Even religious denominations suffered a slight cooling of their support in public opinion. Foreign partners are no exception to this trend either.

This disappointment could be justified by the slowness of the reforms. Only 45% of Congolese surveyed in December 2021 believe that the state of siege established in Ituri and North Kivu is a good thing, compared to 63% three months before. Moreover, the fight against corruption, another leitmotif of the government, is struggling to convince of its effectiveness even if Jules Alingete, inspector general of finance-head of service, is still more popular than any member of the executive is. “He has been very visible since Tshisekedi's term, with several media outlets. However, many Congolese still consider that the quality of governance and the fight against corruption have not improved. The sanctions seem to be symbolic instead of a constant and thorough approach to fight against corruption”, analyzes Fred Bauma, executive secretary of Ebuteli.

In fact, we observe a great increase in indecision. While in March 2021, only 4% of Congolese polled said they did not have an opinion on President Tshisekedi, they are now 28.4% to be undecided on the question. This could be explained, among other things, by the absence of a visible political alternative. The number of potential abstainers for the 2023 presidential election also remains worrying: only 43.6% of Congolese polled say they intend to vote.

Read, The rapport