Why KDF-led regional force in DRC is facing uncertain future

The complex dynamics range from clarity of the status of force agreement, the troops' command and the mode of its operation, to whether it should engage the rebel group in a fight.

The intrigues saw the force’s overall commander Jeff Nyagah abruptly replaced and reassigned other roles back in Nairobi.

He was replaced by Major General Alphaxad Muthuri Kiugu amid murmurs that the outgoing commander ought to have been replaced by one from another country, not Kenya.

According a report by Radio France Internationale, “this appointment was not appreciated by […] Kinshasa, because [DRC President Felix Tshesekedi] was not consulted by [President] William Ruto in his decision making appointing the replacement of Jeff Nyagah."

The report continues to say that “the Tshisekedi regime considers that this appointment is not very 'cavalry', and expresses the wish to see the coordination of this force be rotating and not remain an exclusive feature of Kenya."

And that "Kinshasa also suggests that the Status of Forces Abroad agreement be quickly revised before any extension of the EAC(East African Community)'s mandate."

The undertones about ceding the force’s leadership to another country has not gone well with Nairobi as some sources say that the vision of regional force was mooted by Kenya and that the country has spent heavily in putting it together and generating the road map for its operation.

Though each country contributing troops meet their keep, Kenya has been pivotal in facilitating them, as it is the one providing the logistical support to the troops, including transportation.

It was KDF that airlifted South Sudanese troops to their bases in Rumangabo, among others.

KDF was the first member of the regional force to be deployed in the country in November last year. 

Troops from other EAC countries got deployed by the end of March.

The force deployment agreement had mandated the EACRF to actively assist the Congolese state to “contain, defeat and eradicate negative forces” that refused to join the demobilisation process."

The country has an excess of 120 armed groups but the focus has been on M23.

Nyagah had told Kenyan media pool in North Kivu province that his understanding of the mandate was that he was to enforce the Luanda ceasefire, protect civilians, oversee return of displaced population and open up main supply routes and humanitarian corridors.

He had resisted spirited pressure to engage the rebel fighters in an offensive, saying that had been the trend for decade in the conflict-ridden nation with no respite for the poor population.

Congolese journalists attending press conference at force headquarters persistently asked whether the commander was sure the M23 were withdrawing from occupied areas and why his troops were not engaging the group in a fight.

“I’m not here for war, but for peace,” Nyagah would say.

Perhaps the push to engage the fighters in offensive was best channelled by the DRC president in Kinsasha in a February summit that saw Nyagah and PresidentRuto participate.

Tshisekedi told Nyagah as Ruto stood-by that he thought his troops were favouring M23 and that he should have been out firing.

“...don't favour the M23. It would be a shame if the population took it out on you. You came to help us and not to have problems. Pay attention to this, communicate with the population," Tshisekedi told Nyagah.

Then there is the issue of Rwanda whose participation in the force is at best lukewarm, a fact that may have occasioned the cautious approach by EACRF.

There is a palpable dislike for the country among DRC population arising from the perception that M23 members are ethnic Tutsis with roots from Rwanda.

A UN report had implicated Rwanda in allegedly funding the fighting outfit.

Regional analysts paint a bleak picture of the future of the regional force, saying that if it assume a role of peacekeeping, Kinsasha won’t be happy and that undermines its existence.

Ryan O’Farrell, a senior analyst at Bridgeways Foundation, says that the KDF-driven model of operation is what angers Kinsasha and fuels speculation of collaboration with M23.

“EACRF's unwillingness to fight M23 even as M23 seized more territory really isn't what Kinshasa wanted. EACRF was meant to be an offensive force deployed from Haut-Uele to South Kivu, and now it's operating as a peacekeeping force in a comparatively small part of North Kivu,” O’Farrell said.

“…...EAC communiques repeatedly stressed that the mission was intended to help restore Congolese state authority, but FARDC (Congolese army) and other state bodies have not returned to EACRF zones and locals consistently report that M23 retains control and levies taxes, albeit less visibly.”