Catholic Priest Treks for Miles to Distribute Food to DR Congo’s Needy Families

St. Francis of Paola Parish serves Plateaux de Bateke, a place that is about 80 kilometers outside DRC’s capital, Kinshasa, and where, according to Fr. Bolengu, “many people would not love to live. Ironically, this place is rich in manganese mineral deposits in the mineral-rich country.” 

“People here have neither electricity nor a good source of drinking water. Houses are poorly constructed as well. People live in abject poverty,” Fr. Bolengu said in a previous interview with ACI Africa.

In Bikana, and in other mission stations that the Mill Hill Missionary Priest visited during Lent, people who relied on the sale of simple commodities such as charcoal have been left to starve owing to insecurity in the region.

“Because of attacks, it is no longer safe for business people, who came with their cars to buy commodities from these communities. People have been left without any sources of livelihood,” Fr. Bolengu said.

Residents of Plateaux de Bateke have been experiencing attacks from “Mobondo”, a group of individuals claiming to prevent the sale of community land, by the elderly people, also identified locally as “Mfumu”.

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In the interview with ACI Africa, Fr. Bolengu explained that the Mfumu have attracted the wrath of the Mobondo for selling community land without any consultations. 

“They give away large tracts of land for something as trivial as a car. Rich people come from Kinshasa and get huge tracts of land at throw-away prices,” the Catholic Priest said.

The infamous “Mobondo” have, in turn, been on a killing spree, sometimes targeting younger members of the community, especially innocent motorbike riders.

Fr. Bolengu suspects that “powerful people, especially in government” are now fuelling the conflict that he says is now “completely out of control.”

School-going children now prefer to stay at home for fear of being waylaid by the ruthless killers, the founder of Bakanja-Anuarite Formation Centre told ACI Africa. 

He shared that St. Francis of Paola Parish is taking care of 30 children who ran away from the hostilities in their respective homes, including insecurity and the danger of starvation. 

The Catholic Parish has rented two rooms for the children; one for boys and the other for girls, Fr. Bolengu said.

“Our initial plan was to have a permanent hostel for the children we rescued. But our proposal hasn’t attracted funding yet. Many children have dropped out of school because of hunger and insecurity. Many have been left orphans. Our desire is to offer as many of them as possible a safe environment for them to experience their childhood,” Fr. Bolengu added.

Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.