Didier Budimbu insists DR Congo-AS Monaco pact has total integrity after corruption complaint | OneFootball

DR Congo sports minister Didier Budimbu has defended the government’s image partnership with AS Monaco after a Paris complaint alleging corruption, money laundering and embezzlement. According to L'Équipe, the Parquet national financier (PNF) has referred the case to Monaco’s prosecutor general, who has registered it.

Filed on 4 September, the complaint targets Budimbu and was lodged by lawyer Hervé Diakiese on behalf of two Congolese citizens living in France who sought anonymity for fear of reprisals. After months of analysis, the PNF issued an official denunciation to the Monegasque authorities, and prosecutor general Stéphane Thibault confirmed on Wednesday evening that he had received it.

Posting on X on Wednesday night, Budimbu said integrity around the partnership was total, and that procedures were transparent and approved by the government.

The deal is a €4.8m, three-year image partnership, formalised in late June 2025, to promote the country under the slogan “RD Congo, coeur de l’Afrique”.

A ministry communiqué rejected accusations it said were relayed by a French outlet about the PNF’s transmission to Monaco. It characterised the referral as administrative, not an indictment, the opening of judicial proceedings or an admission of wrongdoing, positions the report had not advanced.

The ministry also firmly denied any claim of embezzlement, money laundering or corruption, adding that the agreement with AS Monaco was approved by competent government bodies and carried out in line with financial, contractual and budgetary rules. AS Monaco has previously said it took all usual precautions before concluding the deal.

Source: L'Équipe