the Congolese-German judoka, Marie Branser blocked before Oran

Enough is enough. The Congolese government is called upon to bang its fist on the table, to deliver the athletes practicing judo in the country. It’s urgent.

Nothing has worked at the Congolese National Judo Federation (Fenacoju) for almost two years. The crisis born in the aftermath of the aborted elections of November 30, 2020, created a deleterious climate from which judokas unfortunately suffer today.

If the public authorities do not get involved promptly, the Democratic Republic of the Congo will be absent from the senior African championships in the specialty scheduled for May 26 to 29, 2022 at the Mohamed Benahmed convention center in Oran, Algeria. the will of a single individual.

Bobo Mbongo, the problem

Not only does he no longer concern himself with the normal functioning of the discipline by regularly organizing activities, Bobo Mbongo, interim president of the outgoing committee of Fenacoju, even refuses to register the professional Leopards for international competitions for selfish reasons.

Marie Branser, double African champion (Madagascar 2020 and Senegal 2021) is the victim of the antagonism between the two camps opposed to the postponed elections of November 2020. The Congolese judoka of German origin is prevented from representing the DRC in Algeria since suspected to be close to the camp opposed to that which supported the candidacy of Bobo Mbongo. Holding the judobase (access code to the accreditation of athletes in international competitions), the interim president of Fenacoju found an opportunity to sanction the Leopards who do not appreciate his management method.

Sensing the danger coming, Marie Branser sent a letter to Fenacoju to obtain her accreditation for the competition which is on the horizon, but she has not had a favorable response so far. In the letter of May 5, the judoka and her coach did not pose any financial problem.

“We, Marie Branser, athlete of the Congolese Judo Federation, and Petru Gherhes, coach, hereby confirm that we will bear the costs of the 2022 African Championship in Oran ourselves and that these will not be supported by the Congolese Judo Federation. In return, we ask that the athlete be immediately registered for the tournament via judobase and that the invitation letter, necessary for the issuance of the visa, be issued immediately.they insisted.

Solution: a simple phone call from the Ministry of Sports

If Bobo Mbongo is the problem blocking the participation of the Leopards in international competitions, the solution could be the Ministry of Sports and Recreation. According to our investigations, the highest body of judo in Africa is seized of the situation which prevails in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The African Judo Union (UAJ) would be ready to collaborate with the Congolese government to save Congolese judo plunged into a crisis born of selfish interests. According to our source, during a telephone conversation between the two parties, the African judo authorities said they were waiting for the Democratic Republic of Congo to make proposals on how to stem this crisis and allow athletes to exercise without worry.

Since then, the appointment of the national coordination of judo by the Minister of Sports and Recreation to overcome this problem has dragged on. This Friday is the deadline for Marie Branser to obtain her accreditation, she, who has trained for months according to this competition.

Exasperated by the blocking of the outgoing committee, the judokas of the city of Kinshasa had organized a sit-in on Thursday March 25, 2021 in front of the office of Governor Gentiny Ngobila to demand the organization of elections for the leaders of the Federation committee. On this subject, Minister Serge Nkonde had convened the two camps to find the right balance. But, the status quo remains, the discipline is dying and the sponsor State is called upon to save judo from the current sinking.