The DRC government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya has turned to an aggressive campaign mobilising the reluctant youth to enlist in the Country’s military.
DRC Army which is currently fighting several armed groups in the Eastern province of the country needs to boost it’s boots on the Frontline.
“The current generation has no right to be a spectator: it must place itself on the front line for the defense of the Homeland, the conquest of peace, and the defense of our sovereignty,” Muyaya said on Tuesday.
The AFC/M23 rebels that took up arms Three years ago have taken control of major cities in the Kivu’s and have seized large swaths of territory stretching from Bunagana through Goma to Bukavu and Uvira on the shores of lake Tanganyika.
The rebels control stretches along border with Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania with fears of reaching Zambian border.
Congolese army continues to lose its soldiers on the battlefield while more switch sides to join the rebels whose lightning offensives have become more appealing to the Congolese Youth.
Muyaya said, “being young today means refusing disinformation, defending our sovereignty, and carrying, everywhere, the voice of a standing Congo that is master of its destiny.”
“There can be no lasting peace if young people do not take ownership of the history of our country, our culture, our narrative, and above all, the ongoing daily struggle for the defense of the Homeland,” Muyaya said.
The AFC/M23 alliance has a strong presence on social media providing prompt updates from the frontline.
However, the rebels and the Kinshasa regime media regularly clash on social media each side churning out competing propaganda.
Kinshasa has previously gone overboard as the military spokesperson openly called for rape of relatives of the rebels alliance. This was condemned by international community and several governments .
Muyaya also said, “being patriotically Congolese means always defending the Homeland regardless of one’s camp or political convictions.”
“Never compromise or conspire with the enemy to kill one’s own brothers and find through violence a way to access power,” he added.
