Concerns over a deepening judicial crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo were brought to the forefront during a plenary session of the Senate on Friday, as Senator Alphonse Ngoyi Kasanji denounced what he described as the “total paralysis” of the High Court of Mbuji-Mayi in Kasaï-Oriental province.
Presenting an information motion before the upper chamber of Parliament, the senator warned that the local judicial system has effectively ceased functioning.
The situation follows the suspension of two judges at the High Court, reportedly linked to recent disciplinary measures, combined with the absence of the court’s president, who is currently on leave.
As a result, the court is unable to convene sessions due to a lack of the legally required quorum to form its chambers. According to Ngoyi Kasanji, this has left the institution incapable of carrying out its core judicial responsibilities.
“There are no judges at the High Court of Mbuji-Mayi. People are being held in prison without any hope of being heard,” the former provincial governor stated, emphasizing the urgency of intervention by the Superior Council of the Magistracy.
The judicial standstill is already having serious consequences for the local prison system. Authorities are facing a growing backlog of criminal cases, leading to prolonged and, in some cases, indefinite pretrial detentions.
This has contributed to worsening overcrowding in detention facilities in Mbuji-Mayi.
The senator warned that the situation risks escalating into widespread human rights violations, with detainees effectively deprived of their constitutional right to a fair trial within a reasonable time.
In his address, Ngoyi Kasanji called on the Senate leadership to alert the relevant authorities, particularly the Minister of Justice, Guillaume Ngefa, urging swift action to deploy newly trained magistrates to the affected jurisdiction.
He questioned why regions such as Mbuji-Mayi remain without functioning courts despite the recent recruitment and training of new judicial personnel, describing the situation as both incomprehensible and unacceptable.
The issue is expected to prompt further debate within government and judicial institutions as pressure mounts to restore the rule of law in one of the country’s key provincial capitals.