Created since October 12, 1982, the Congolese daily Le Potentiel had a total of 40 years of existence on October 12, 2022. On this occasion, a celebration was organized this past Sunday in Kinshasa.
During this event, several activities took place, in particular the ceremony for the official handing over of the archives of Le Potentiel to the National Institute of Archives (INACO), the awarding of merit prizes to journalists who have contributed to the influence of this body of press and to other personalities of the country, among them, the former Prime Minister of the DRC and founder of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) Étienne Tshisekedi Wa Mulumba and his wife, Marthe Kasalu.
In his speech, the founder of this daily, Modeste Mutinga first began by retracing the “historic and painful” course of Le Potentiel.
In the process, he estimated that the archives of Le Potentiel will make it possible to meet 4 challenges, namely:
- Contribute to the knowledge of the history of the country, these last 40 years, through the facts and gestures of various actors, as reported by generations of journalists who have worked at Le Potentiel;
- Make a significant contribution to the historical and memorial heritage of the Republic;
- Allow researchers, both national and foreign, easy access to press archives in INACO facilities;
- Give the Congolese press an authentic image of its struggles, its doubts and its victories at critical moments in the evolution of the country.
With regard to diplomas of merit, the founder of Le Potentiel said in his speech that the diploma of merit awarded to Étienne Tshisekedi is recognition of his fight for democracy in the DRC, while that of Marthe Kasalu is a crowning achievement of his resistance to political oppression.
"The fight of the leader of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress against unscrupulous political regimes of democratic values, the consistency of his speech, his ability to inspire the media, including Le Potentiel, and his ability to galvanize the people around national causes earn him all our gratitude. For all his work, we award him, posthumously, the diploma of exceptional merit,” he said.
And to add: “Behind a Great Man, says an adage, there is always a Great Lady. Le Potentiel recognizes in Mama Marthe Kasalu Tshisekedi the qualities of a Great Resistance to political oppression. He salutes her bravery as the devoted companion of the liberator of Congolese democracy. Hence, the issuance of a second Diploma of exceptional merit in his favor. A special ceremony will be organized to present these two diplomas”.
In addition, Modeste Mutinga reassured that together with Le Potentiel team, they will, for the future, focus their energies on digitization and digitization, key words to survive in this century of the technological revolution of the media.
Christian Dimanyayi
Source: https://7sur7.cd/
7sur7 (Democratic Republic of Congo)
