Exiled Congo opposition leader's fraud conviction overturned - SABC News - Breaking news, special reports, world, business, sport coverage of all South African current events. Africa's news leader.

Moise Katumbi was sentenced in absentia to three years in prison in June 2016, shortly after defecting from Joseph Kabila's ruling party and announcing he would run for president later that year.for real estate fraud, ruling that the trial court had been pressured by former President Joseph Kabila’s government, Katumbi’s lawyer said on Friday.

Katumbi denied all the charges, which he said were aimed at keeping him from running to replace Kabila, who was due to step down in December 2016 after 16 years in power. Kabila denied that. His government ultimately delayed the election by two years before he finally stepped down in January, replaced by opposition leaderThe appeals court’s ruling, issued on Wednesday, accepted the claims of one of the trial judges, Chantal Ramazani, that the verdict had been issued under duress by the government. Ramazani went into hiding after making the accusations.

Katumbi’s lawyer, Joseph Mukendi, told Reuters that Katumbi could return to Congo now to defend himself in the mercenaries’ case, which has not yet been tried. Katumbi was blocked from re-entering the country in 2018 to file his candidacy for the presidential election, a race polls showed him leading. He ended up backing opposition leader Martin Fayulu instead. Fayulu finished second to Tshisekedi, although multiple sources told Reuters the results were rigged in favour of Tshisekedi, who was seen by Kabila as less of a threat to the outgoing administration’s interests. Kabila and Tshisekedi’s camps deny the vote was rigged.

an other evidence proving that this criminal regime of kabila has captured all the state's institutions for 18 years by oppressing,killing, unlawfully arresting the Congolese citizens we welcome the court's outcome kabila must be prosecuted for crimes & looting stat's economy

Heading in the right direction, good decision because we need all if them back to build our Country and most create employment.

À prove that president Felix Tshisekedi has restored democracy in DRC. There is no more politician in jail or prevented to go to DRC. I am Proud of my country

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