Constitutional Court Clears Referendum Law With Multiple Reservations

Kinshasa, July 28, 2026 - The Constitutional Court ruled that the bill setting conditions for organising a referendum is constitutional, subject to reservations on articles including 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 19, 21, 23 and 43.

The decision allows President Tshisekedi to promulgate the text after its adoption by the National Assembly and Senate, provided the court’s reservations are annexed when the law is published in the Official Journal.

Tshisekedi had referred the bill to the court under Article 160 of the Constitution after defending Parliament’s right to legislate during Independence Day remarks on June 30.

Opposition groups accuse the majority of using the referendum framework to prepare constitutional change that could loosen presidential term limits-an allegation rejected by the presidential camp, which says the reform is about institutional functioning.

The ruling landed as C64 and other opponents had suspended field actions in favour of the announced dialogue.

This detail was included in the mid-to-late July DRC briefing.