Kenyan President William Samoei Ruto has called upon the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) to acknowledge that the M23 rebellion is a Congolese problem that needs a Congolese solution.
The president was speaking in an interview on Tuesday where he was reacting to the conflict in eastern DR Congo between the M23 and government forces. President Ruto said: “As Heads of State, in a meeting, we asked; M23, the people in there, are they Rwandese or they are Congolese? And DRC said, these are Congolese. End of question !
« So, if these are Congolese, how does it become a Rwanda problem? How does it become a Kagame problem? »
Ruto thus affirmed that since the question is settled that M23 are Congolese and a Congolese problem, there is an urgent need for a Congolese solution. He however indicated there were loophole to the Launda and Nairobi peace processes reaffirming the need for a Congolese – prone peace process.
For the Nairobi peace process, he reechoed that the M23 wants to be involved in the dialogue with the government. While commenting on the exit of the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) from DR Congo, president Ruto reasoned that there is no better outcome than when aggrieved citizens are willing to engage their government in a discussion to sort out their issues.
