Referendum law read on Congolese national television
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on AGP Gabon
Law No. 26/045 on the organisation of a referendum was read on Congolese national television on 11 November, after being promulgated by Félix Tshisekedi. The presidential order concerns the conditions for holding a referendum to revise the Constitution or adopt a new one, reports TV5 Monde.
The presidential order promulgating Law No. 26/045 of 9 November 2026 setting out the conditions for organising a referendum in the Democratic Republic of Congo was read on national television, RTNC, on Wednesday 11 November, reports TV5 Monde. Promulgated by President Félix Tshisekedi, the law opens the possibility of a referendum on a revision of the Constitution or the adoption of a new Constitution.
Previously adopted by the National Assembly and Senate, the text broadens the conditions for holding a referendum. The promulgation comes as the opposition accuses Félix Tshisekedi of seeking to remain in power beyond 2028, the year set for the end of his second and final term under the current Constitution.
Demonstrations organised in June and September in Kinshasa and several major cities had denounced the constitutional project. The United Nations reported at least one death during the June demonstrations, while the opposition reported the death of one of its members in September. In mid-July, Félix Tshisekedi announced a national dialogue, which the main opposition parties have so far refused to join.
The promulgation comes after the adoption of the law governing the organisation of the referendum on 23 October and the promulgation of the referendum law on 11 November.
