When President Felix Tchisekedi came to power in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), it was clear he had come with a real purpose to end lawlessness in his country, especially violence meted out by armed groups operating there, especially in eastern DRC. In quick succession, he quickly neutralized several high ranking rebel leaders, especially members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) who had comfortably made eastern DRC their home for the last two decades and a half. Most of all that time, the peacekeeping troops under the auspices of the more than 20,000-strong United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Congo (MONUSCO) was present. With an annual budget of over a billion dollars, it is undoubtedly the most expensive and ineffective mission. For the 20 years it has been present in DRC, there is little to show for it, in fact, rebel groups have been running circles around it which has infuriated Congolese victims of daily violence by armed groups. So when we see civilians overrunning MONUSCO camps and installations, however unfortunate, it was bound to happen sooner than later. Beni, in north eastern DRC has been suffering for years from the Ugandan Islamic group, ADF. With no respite in sight, it was a powder keg waiting to explode. It is time the UN reacts decisively; either it fulfils its peacekeeping mandate, or it just declares defeat and pulls out because it has been a 20-year failure. There is no doubt that if the UN gave regional countries a fraction of the resources it spends on the mission, they would do a better job.
