A final stop in the provinces for the remains of Patrice Lumumba: after Sankuru and Kisangani, the delegation went to Lubumbashi then Shilatembo, in Katanga, where the Congolese Prime Minister died in January 1961.
Once again, it is with military honors that the coffin was welcomed on its arrival in Lubumbashi, noted our special correspondent in Shilatembo, Paulina Zidi. Quick stop before taking the road to Shilatembo, 50 kilometers away, the place where Patrice Lumumba was assassinated on January 17, 1961.
And these ceremonies particularly affect Professor Célestin. This resident of Lubumbashi is from the same region of Sankuru as the national hero.
” We are very moved to see his remains pass where he was eliminated. He was born somewhere else and we finished him off here. For us, this is an extraordinary moment, with immense significance. »
Many testimonies and religious services accompany this night of mourning in Katanga. The remains then take the road on Monday for Kinshasa and the last part of this funeral. An arrival in the capital which will coincide with the start of the three days of national mourning.
► To read also: From prison to myth: in Kisangani, Lumumba’s family in the footsteps of their political fight
A restored memorial site
On the site of Shilantembo, is exposed a wreckage of the plane DC -3 repainted in white, noted our special correspondent on the spot Denise Mahého. It is an identical device to the one that had transported Patrice Lumumba to Katanga 1961. Just opposite, sits an imposing statue of about 4 meters high, completely restored with more durable materials, as Alain Mbuyu explains, the sculptor : “ We completely redid the Lumumba statue because the old one had imperfections. This one is made of marble dust mixed with glue. It was then plasticized with bronze. Its lifespan is 100 years. »
Not far from there, a large mausoleum of more than 200 m² was built. It is here that the coffin containing the relic of Patrice Lumumba is exposed. On the site also stand out two bases on which will be placed the busts of Mpolo and Okito, the two companions of the former Prime Minister. For Chrisnovic Balanganayi, adviser to the presidency who follows the work, this event is an opportunity to learn the lessons of history.
” Lumumba in Katanga, it’s time to send a message of peace and reconciliation between peoples. Because there is a communication that was made years ago accusing the Katangans of having killed Lumumba. But today, the reality is quite different. »
The restoration of the Lumumba memorial site took nearly five years. Here, young Congolese do not forget the tragic end of the hero of independence
In the shadow of the hero, the two companion martyrs
A national mourning not necessarily well experienced by everyone. On January 17, 1961, Patrice Lumumba was not the only one to die. That day, his two companions were also murdered by the same people and in the same way in the former province of Katanga. Joseph Okito was president of the Senate and Maurice Mpolo, minister of youth and chief of staff of the Congolese army.
► To read also: our retrospective “Patrice Lumumba, a murdered independence” (January 2021)
Today, their families feel excluded from the national mourning ceremony that they too hoped to be able to.
At the bottom of an imposing building that rises along the Boulevard du 30 juin, Maurice has set up an office for the Maurice Mpolo Foundation, his namesake and grandfather. With a piercing gaze, he leafs through the black and white photos and comments on them with passion and pride. He hoped his family would also be at the heart of the nation’s tributes. ” We do not understand the government’s desire to support only one family and leave the other two “, he loose at the microphone of our correspondent in Kinshasa, Patient Ligodi.
His parents would also like to turn the page on a mourning that has lasted too long. “ Me, I am a grandson. But my parents are still there. I see the pain they are feeling right now. It’s as if we were still rubbing the knife in the wound, it hurts a lot. “.
He also thought that the destinies of these three men would be linked until these tributes, and expected a gesture from the State. ” Symbolically, highlighting two coffins with their images would have been a strong image not only for the family, but also for the nation. »
Meanwhile, Maurice Mpolo has big plans for the memory of his relative. Through the foundation of which he is the president, he intends in particular to set up a virtual museum, organize symposiums and other activities on the fight of the fathers of Congolese independence.