Kinshasa, June 2nd, 2025 (CPA) – Magistrates and court officers were reminded on Monday of the need to respect the times set for hearings, during a general parade organized at the High Military Court in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo. ‘It is up to you, the magistrates, to make a great effort to start hearings on time. Because according to the complaints I have received from lawyers, hearings set for 9am start at 1pm or 2pm, which is not at all normal’, said Lieutenant General Joseph Mutombo, First President of the High Military Court, who presided over the parade. ‘If you get to work on time, despite the traffic jams, you can beat it, because every day of your life is a constraint’, he added. ‘If it’s the assessor judges who are dragging things out, they need to be told that this is not normal and it gives a bad impression to the public and to the lawyers’, added Lieutenant General Mutombo.
He also warned all chiefs who engage in bad practices towards the soldiers at their disposal. ‘Don’t take money intended for the military, because it can bring you bad luck in your life. This is not dignified behavior, stop it’, said the First President of the Military High Court. At the same time, he announced that the accountant would be carrying out checks, and anyone caught engaging in such bad practices or behavior would be subject to sanctions. In addition, the First President of the High Military Court invited the soldiers assigned to the headquarters to banish lies. ‘Don’t come asking for help using lies and brandishing false invoices’, he said. Addressing commanders, he asked them not to endorse this type of request. ‘When you are responsible for sharing food or other supplies with the army and specifically with military justice, share these goods intended for the military as you should’, General Mutombo hammered.
He also took the opportunity to introduce to the audience two senior magistrates, other than major generals, newly promoted by presidential order to the rank of lieutenant-general in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. They are lieutenant-generals Jean Bivegete Pinga and Paul Ilunga.