The Congo is Not for Sale anti-corruption coalition has released a new financial investigation revealing that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) could lose $3.71 billion from mining and oil deals with Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler.
Publicly available financial data shows that the DRC government lost $1.95 billion in revenue between 2003 and 2021. A further $1.76 billion in future royalty payments to Gertler’s companies will be lost between 2021 and 2039 if nothing is done to halt the hemorrhage of funds, according to the coalition.
Jean Claude Mputu, a spokesperson for the group, has advised the DRC government not to ignore the loss of billions of dollars from its coffers, especially when it is in dire need of funds to rebuild its economy and pull its citizens out of poverty.
“In light of the findings of this new investigation, there is only one course of action for President Tshisekedi — he should immediately take the bold step of ordering a thorough and credible investigation into all mining deals involving Dan Gertler,” Mputu said.
Despite its mineral wealth, the DRC is still one of the poorest African countries. The World Bank reported that the DRC houses the third-largest population of poor people globally. In 2018, it was estimated that 73 percent of the Congolese population, or 60 million people, lived on less than $1.90 a day.
“The revenue that Congo is losing could be used to build schools, pay teachers, provide basic healthcare or pave more roads, but instead it is lining the pockets of a private businessman. President Tshisekedi’s government can step in to halt the future losses and reverse this colossal loss,” Mputu said.
In December 2017, the Treasury Department issued Executive Order 13818, implementing the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act against Gertler and his businesses for corruption. This placed him under U.S. sanctions, which were lifted a few hours before then-President Donald Trump left office. However, PwC, the financial auditors for Afriland First Bank, later notified the bank’s subsidiary in the DRC of potential sanctions evasions by Getler under its watch.
The PwC noted that close associates linked to the mining tycoon made over $40 million in cash deposits and withdrawals through the bank’s subsidiary in the DRC. They carried out the transactions while he was still under sanctions.
Nevertheless, in February 2021, a Kinshasa court sentenced to death Gradi Koko Lobanga and Navy Malela Mawani, two Congolese whistleblowers who accused the bank of involvement in a money-laundering network linked to Getler.
The court convicted Lobanga and Mawani in absentia, as they were already in exile with their families in Europe. The court decision incited an uproar in the international community. This prompted the U.S. Treasury Department to revoke Getler’s license to operate on March 8.
