Tribute to Pope Francis No.05

My testimonies to Pope Francis’ commitment to the Framework Agreement between the Holy See and the Democratic Republic of Congo and his apostolic visit to that country.
I was Director of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo when, on Thursday 3 March 2022, the Vatican and the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO) simultaneously made public the announcement of the signing of the Framework Agreement between the Holy See and the Democratic Republic of Congo, several months after it had been prepared ‘behind the scenes’. The announcement took place at Caritas facilities in Kinshasa, in the presence of Prime Minister Jean Michel Sama Lukonde Kyenge.
For several months, this visit had already been undergoing spiritual preparation in the various dioceses and parishes of the country, and even in some neighbouring countries. It was due to take place from 02 to 05 July 2022 in Kinshasa and Goma. However, the health of the Pope – who was already beginning to have some minor mobility problems at the time – meant that the visit had to be postponed, which was a source of concern for the Catholic faithful. To apologise and reassure both the faithful and the authorities, the Holy Father had to send the second most important figure in the Roman Curia, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State at the Vatican, to Kinshasa.

Prior to this, as soon as it was announced, the Government had already been in contact with the National Episcopal Conference of the Congo and the Apostolic Nunciature of the Holy See in Kinshasa, to ensure proper ‘political’ and ‘technical’ preparation for this visit. Several meetings were held for this purpose and, as the Prime Minister’s first aide, I took part in almost all of them.
At the Prime Minister’s Office, we even set up a ‘Thursday watch’ to to make sure that all the details were in place.
I want to bear witness to the Holy Father’s involvement in the effective implementation of the Framework Agreement between the Holy See and my country, and his humble attitude in the preparations for this visit.

1. The Pope’s pugnacious commitment to the implementation of the Framework of Agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Holy See
On 20 May 2016, under the mandate of President Joseph Kabila, a ‘Framework Agreement’ between the Holy See and the Democratic Republic of Congo ‘on matters of common interest’ was concluded in Rome, in Vatican City. The agreement was signed on the Vatican side by Mgr Paul Richard Gallagher, the Secretary for Relations with States, and, on the Congolese side, by Mr Raymond Tshibanda N’Tungamulongo, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. Since then, nothing!
We had to wait for the official visit to the Vatican by the new Head of State, Mr Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, for the Pope to grant him an audience on Friday 17 January 2020. by His Holiness the Pope, the subject was ‘revived’. It seems that, during their meeting, the two personalities highlighted the ‘good bilateral relations’ that exist between their two States and, in this context, the Pope reminded his host of the urgency and need to implement the Framework of Agreement signed nearly four years ago! The Congolese Head of State immediately promised to do everything in his power to ensure that the Framework of Agreement, which had already been ratified by Parliament, was implemented and extended an invitation to the Pope to make an official visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
On his return to Kinshasa, he gave instructions to both the Prime Minister and the ministers concerned, to fulfil this promise.

After ratification by Parliament in 2019 and entry into force in 2020, the process of implementing the Framework of Agreement was initiated by a decree of the Prime Minister, signed in June 2022.
Then, between the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO), the Apostolic Nunciature and the ministries concerned, a joint commission was set up to draft five ‘specific agreements’ covering the areas of education, health and the Church’s charitable activities, pastoral care in prisons and hospitals and the Church’s patrimonial and fiscal regime, not forgetting the question of implementing the Church’s legal status.

The Framework of Agreement between the Congolese State and the Roman Catholic Church defines a very special legal status for the latter and grants it complete freedom in its religious activities. It also provides for special facilities to be granted to the Church in various social and economic areas.
In concrete terms, the five ‘specific agreements’ were to be signed with, among others, the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Justice, to ensure that the new legal status of the Church, which had been transformed from a simple ‘non-profit-making association’ into a genuine ‘legal person under international law’, was properly observed; with the Minister of Finance, for tax and customs facilities; with the Minister of Primary, Secondary and Technical Education and the Minister of Higher and University Education, for the ecclesiastical management of schools and universities as well as for the teaching of religion in the said establishments; with the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Justice, to ensure that the new legal status of the Church was properly observed.
with the Minister of Health, among others, for the for the ecclesiastical management of medical training and charitable activities…

From the mouth of Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, Apostolic Nuncio, we learned that the Pope was personally following the negotiations. The Bishops’ Conference itself, through its President Marcel Utembi Tapa, Archbishop of Kisangani, never missed an opportunity to remind the government of the urgent need to find a solution. The urgency indicated by the Pope and the importance he attached to the signing of these specific agreements. The fact is that several of our ministers, in the Joint Commission Commission, had raised a number of ‘objections’, if not to the Framework of Agreement not being implemented, then at least that the process of implementing it should be slowed down. I remember that one day, when asked about this slowdown, the Minister of State, Minister of Justice, had only this to say:
‘Dircab, we can see that if the Prime Minister’s Office is putting this pressure on us, it’s because you and the Prime Minister are Catholics’; to which I replied: ’Are you also doing this because you are not Catholics?

From that moment on, the Prime Minister and I took the bull by the horns. A strict deadline was set for all the negotiating ministers to conclude the agreements before the arrival of the Pope’s envoy, Cardinal Parolin, announced for early July 2022. In addition to the interim meetings held each time at the “Hôtel du Gouvernement” between the government, led by the Prime Minister, and the Congo National Episcopal Conference, led by the Archbishop of Kisangani or his delegate, In the presence of the Pope’s delegates who had come all the way from Rome, ‘watch Thursdays’, bringing together the President of CENCO, the Apostolic Nuncio, the Prime Minister and myself, intensified at the Prime Minister’s Office, especially as the Pope’s arrival approached, once the visit had been confirmed.

Finally, on Saturday 02 July 2022, in the Council Chamber of the Prime Minister’s Office, in the presence of the Prime Minister, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, our Minister of Foreign Affairs and the President of CENCO, Mgr Marcel Utembi, the five specific agreements were signed. As a final gesture of goodwill, the Pope could now seriously consider visiting the DRC, without making this a condition. At least, that’s what we expected from the Congolese side. And Cardinal Parolin had given us clear signs of this.

But once again, the Pope’s pugnacity had to be reckoned with. Until two days before his arrival, at around 11pm, I was woken by a call from the Apostolic Nuncio: ‘ Director of the Cabinet! To date, the Matete Public Prosecutor’s Office has still not taken the necessary steps to allow the undisciplined people leave the priesthood and the Church ….Under these conditions, the Pope can no longer come! By ‘undisciplined’, the Nuncio meant, in fact, the few Dominican priests who, in conflict with the Archdiocese of Kinshasa, had to leave the parish. Archdiocese of Kinshasa, were claiming ownership of the parish church of Saint-Dominique in Limete. Despite the Church’s ruling, had retreated into the parish church so as not to be forced to to move out.

As soon as I received the message, I brought it to the attention of my boss. Even if I find this attitude implausible,’ said the Prime Minister, ’please ensure that this is not just another incident. This is your world of magistrates…’. It was then that I began to talk to Attorney General Kalulu about the importance of what was at stake!

2. The humble attitude of Pope Francis during his ‘state visit’ to the Democratic Republic of Congo
The Pope’s visit was finally confirmed for 31 January 2023 to 03 February 2023. It was an ‘apostolic visit’ for the Church, but an ‘official visit’ or ‘state visit’ for the Democratic Republic of Congo. And it was at the invitation of our Head of State. A State visit – as we know – is an official visit by a foreign Head of State to another Head of State, to another State. It is the highest level of foreign visits by Heads of State, the highest form of diplomatic contact between two countries. In diplomatic law and practice, it necessarily involves strict protocol ceremonies and specific arrangements.
At the Prime Minister’s Office, as the dates drew nearer, the number of ‘watch Thursdays’ increased. Several sites had been selected to cover the Pope’s activities, from N’djili airport – the official reception official welcome – to the Palais de la Nation – the venue for the meeting with our Head of State and various other authorities – via the Ndolo aerodrome – the venue for the popular mass – the Stade des martyrs Stadium – the venue for the meeting with young people – and the Church’s own facilities. specific arrangements had to be made for the reception, comfort and security of a foreign head of state.

The first surprise encountered by the Congolese authorities was that the Pope – announced the Apostolic Nuncio – had demanded that his visit should not be an occasion for excessive expenditure by the DRC! Without going so far as to consider this a blunder, or even diplomatic interference, such intentions were not far-fetched! Without doubt, the ‘Catholic’ side of the Nuncio’s two hosts at the no doubt helped to minimize the incident and lighten the mood of the meeting!
There followed, in a climate of good understanding between the ‘faithful’, a series of choices and checks on the expenses to be incurred: the Pope’s vehicle, his residence, the work of fitting out and decorating the Mass site, the type of platform to be erected, the quality of the chairs… In short, everything was decided ‘in concert’ with the Apostolic Nunciature.
In short, everything was decided ‘in concert’ with the Apostolic Nunciature and the Bishops’ Conference.
One detail deserves to be highlighted here. To carry out the work of fitting out and decorating the Mass site, we needed a reliable contractor for both parties. After a few minutes of thought, the Prime Minister was inspired by the idea of a designer and decorator with an evocative first name. This person had already distinguished himself at the ‘Mass of Reparation’ held by Cardinal Parolin on 3 July 2020 on the esplanade of the Palais du Peuple, with his impeccable decorating work. It was ‘Jesus-Christmas Sheke’! After sharing a small smile, the Church delegation agreed.. They, too, were full of admiration for this first work…

But the greatest difficulty arose when it came to choosing the Pope’s residence and vehicle. For the DRC, as Head of State, the Pope had to be lodged officially by our State, which meant choosing one or more presidential suites in the capital’s most exclusive hotel. Secondly, the official vehicle, apart from the ‘popemobile’, was to be that offered by the Congolese State; which refers to the provision of an official limousine for the Heads of State and Government. The reaction of the other party was swift: ‘Our Pope is not staying at the hotel;
He’ll be staying at the Apostolic Nunciature’. Remembering that John Paul II had done the same in 1980 and 1985, the Prime Minister’s Office, after consultation with the President of the Republic, had no objection. After all, priests have their own idea of comfort!

There remained the choice of official vehicle. Because it was understood that after the walkabout in his papamobile, the Vatican papamobile, the Vatican Head of State was not going to arrive at the Palais de la Nation, our Head of State’s official office, in this vehicle. A strict protocol had even been drawn up for this purpose, for the change of vehicle during the motorcade. Here too, we were met with a categorical refusal on the part of our interlocutors: ‘On all his official visits, the Pope does not travel in limousines. He has his own car, of modest standard; if you like, we can arrange for it to be sent to you’. The Congolese delegation postponed the decision…
Several other meetings were held to settle other details. I remember, for example, that the choice of the Ndolo airfield required a long decision-making process, based on several criteria.
Technical teams even came from the Vatican to inspect everything. Ndolo also proved to them to be the only venue in the Congolese capital that could accommodate the Pope’s Mass in a country with over 47 million Catholics and a capital with no less than 10 million.
One of the most decisive criteria was the possibility of several openings – more or less thirty-four – provided by this space for the safe entry and exit of the faithful. They all had to be all of them. However, the idea of buying or renting chairs for the comfort of all the worshippers was categorically rejected for economic reasons mentioned above. We were told that, even in Rome’s St Peter’s Square, as on other occasions when the Pope has visited the world, the faithful always attend mass standing up!

To return to the episode of the Pope’s car, the Pope was so keen on it that after accepting the idea of it being made available by the DRC, he had to send his own driver to Kinshasa. In the meantime, we had placed an order abroad for one of the four brands on offer. The Vatican staff had told us that the Pope would accept, at most, a small white Toyota Corolla. Finally, with just a few weeks to go before his arrival, I received the Pope’s driver and bodyguard at the Prime Minister’s Office, accompanied by the Apostolic Nuncio and a priest, to inspect the four cars on display. After taking measurements and carrying out a detailed analysis of the vehicles, the choice was finally made in favour of one of the two Toyota Corollas made available by the Presidential Logistics Service. It was modest and so simple that I felt a personal sense of discomfort, even indignity for my great Congo!

I wanted to bear this small testimony so that the story of Pope Francis’s visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, marked above all by his great historic speech of ‘Take your hands off the Congo’, could be told in a wider context. Republic of Congo, marked above all by his great historic speech ‘Take your hands off the Congo…’, does not obscure certain aspects of his personality. Congo…’, does not obscure certain aspects of his personality.
I was very close to Pope Francis. I shook his hand when he welcomed me in the presidential lounge at N’djili airport, and he gave me a rosary on the occasion. He did me the honour of receiving me – my wife, two of my three children and myself – at the Apostolic Nunciature.
Through his Nuncio and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, I officially received his thanks for my contribution to the implementation of the Framework Agreement between the Holy See and my country.

I can testify that he was a humble man full of convictions. His humility upset some official habits which, in diplomacy, can be seen as a cause of diplomatic incidents. His convictions eventually revealed to me his pugnacity, especially when it came to issues affecting the poor.
The Pope did not want his visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo to be like that of a Head of State or a Hollywood Rockstar. Close to the people, he left me with the impression and confirmed me in the conviction that, after all, nothing is so great in this world; that nothing is so important that we should deprive ourselves of the treasures of humility taught by the Gospel.
The fact that he said – without accident or incident – a gigantic Mass in the presence of almost 1.5 million people, is a clear sign of God’s presence in our country and an undeniable miracle of his intervention, insidious but real, in the lives of his children in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Paul-Gaspard NGONDANKOY NKOY-ea-LOONGYA
Professor at the University of Kinshasa
Former Director of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister
Judge at the Council of State (on leave)
National deputy

Tribute to Pope Francis No.05