DRC: Party funding and finances

Updated September 2006

Law No 04/002 of 15 March 2004, Concerning the Organisation and Operation of Political Parties ("Law 04/002 2004") governs matters to do with political party funding and finance.

Public funding

Public funding of political parties is enabled but not mandated by Congolese law. Article 22 (Law 04/002 2004) includes "eventual subvention from the State" among the legitimate sources of a party's revenue. Article 25 outlaws the use of State resources or personnel for the benefit of a particular political party and states that state funding is possible. It but foresees the implementation of public funding through future legislation, but no such legislation has materialised.

Extracted from: Denis Kadima and Dieudonné Tshiyoyo 2009 "Chapter 4: Democratic Republic of Congo" IN Denis Kadima and Susan Booysen (eds) Compendium of Elections in Southern Africa 1989-2009: 20 Years of Multiparty Democracy, EISA, Johannesburg, 118-119.

Many countries provide for the public funding of political parties for election purposes. This is necessary in order to level the playing field and to strengthen the democratic process. Public funding of political parties or independent candidates is not available in the DRC. This is despite Article 25 of Law No. 04/002 of 15 March 2004 on political parties, which stipulates that formally registered political parties may benefit from state subventions. In practice, the transitional government did not allocate public funding to political parties and independent candidates. Likewise, the transitional parliament did not regulate party funding and election campaign finance.

There was, however, a widespread practice which provided for the president and his four vice-presidents to access large amount of money through monthly special resources for their wages and the functioning of their respective offices. Besides, the major parties participating in the transitional political dispensation - namely the PPRD, RCD-Goma and MLC - were allowed to nominate representatives for lucrative positions in transitional institutions and in the parastatal sector. These appointed party officials had to contribute between 10 per cent and 20 per cent of their monthly wages to party funds. As a result, those parties represented in the transitional institutions had an undue advantage over other political parties in terms of access to public resources.

Private funding and disclosure

Apart from public funding, political parties are permitted to raise funds from membership fees, donations and bequests, revenues generated through events and publications and fixed and movable property transactions (Law 04/002 2004, 22). All funding from foreign states is outlawed and parties who breach this provision are liable to dissolution (Law 04/002 2004, 24).

Article 20 (Law 04/002 2004) requires that political parties disclose property ownership to the Minister of Home Affairs, as well as any donations or bequests. The latter disclosures must specify their origin, nature, value and source and must be of non-criminal origin (Law 04/002 2004, 23). Each political party must, on pain of suspension by the Minister, supply (Law 04/002 2004, 21):

• An annual declaration, within two weeks of the anniversary of its registration, to the Department of Home Affairs of the names, professions and residency of its central administrators.
• Annual financial accounts, by the 31st of March every year, to the Minister of Home Affairs to demonstrate conformity to the provisions on revenue sources mentioned above.

References

LAW NO 04/002 OF 15 MARCH 2004, concerning the Organisation and Operation of Political Parties
Loi No 04/002 du 15 Mars 2004 portant organisation et fonctionnement des partis politiques.