In the Democratic Republic of Congo, civil society welcomes the government’s decision not to renew the operating license of Israeli businessman Dan Gertler for two oil blocks in Ituri.
The one we nicknamed Joseph Kabila’s friend questions this decision and evokes force majeure to explain why certain parts of the production sharing agreement signed in 2010 with the Congolese state had not been respected. For the anti-corruption platform “Congo is not for sale”, this decision is a step forward. This platform launched one campaign against Dan Gertler and condemns a multi-billion dollar deficit for the Congolese state, particularly in the mining sector.
Jimmy Munguriek is the Secretary-General of the Ituri Civil Society Consultative Framework on Natural Resources and a member of the Congo is not for sale. He explains why the granting of these blocks to the Israeli businessman has cost the Congolese state dearly and he calls on the government of Sama Lukonde to be transparent in the redistribution of these blocks.
We are pleased with the government’s decision not to renew Dan Gertler’s license. The opaque relationship between Dan Gertler and the regime at the time caused great damage to the Congolese state. Dan Gertler is not an investor but rather a commissioner. He is in the habit of acquiring deposits at a very low cost, selling them more than once! Dan Gertler had acquired these oil blocks in 2010 under very opaque conditions by abolishing the legal buyers of the time, especially Tullow Oils on block 2 and Dig Oil on block 1. And today, if the Democratic Republic of Congo has been condemned before Dig Oil, it is mainly because Dig Oil was abolished by the Congolese government of Block 1 in Graben Albertine, in favor of Dan Gertler. But the Congolese government must now, as I said, take its responsibility in accordance with the law. The law wants the block to be allocated through competitive bidding. This call for tenders must be transparent in order to select the operator with the technical and financial capacity.
A spokesman for the Israeli businessman denies the information provided to RFI by the Ministry of Hydrocarbons. This ministry provoked the lack of respect for certain provisions of the mining code and several million dollars in arrears of payments. The spokesman for the Israeli businessman assures us that this is not true, that everything has been paid for according to the law.
#RDC: Congo does not sell reminds that Dan Gertler continues to benefit from other important assets, which have already caused the state to lose more than $ 2 billion. pic.twitter.com/zZDEczHIkN
– FoxtimE (@foxtimecongo) June 21, 2021
► To read also:DRC: against oil extraction from the Virunga and Salonga nature parks
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