Floribert Bwana Chui

After completing an internship in Kinshasa at the Congolese Control Office (OCC)—the national public body responsible for verifying the conformity, quality, and quantity of goods—Floribert returned to Goma. There, he was appointed head of the border office and commissioner for damage assessment. In this Kivu region, deeply marked by geopolitical tensions and the aftermath of successive wars, his position was highly strategic and exposed to systemic corruption. Parallel to his professional career, Floribert dedicated a large part of his free time to the most destitute through the Community of Sant'Egidio. He was particularly involved with the street children of Goma (the "Maibobo"), providing them with food, clothing, attentive listening, and actively participating in the School of Peace. In July 2007, Floribert was confronted with a serious moral dilemma: a large shipment of spoiled and toxic rice from Rwanda arrived at the border. Destined to be sold in the markets of Goma, this expired merchandise represented a mortal danger to the local population, especially the poorest. Mafia intermediaries offered him significant bribes to turn a blind eye and authorize the entry of the rice. Conscious of the risks he was taking by resisting, but guided by his Christian faith and his love for his neighbor, Floribert categorically refused the money and ordered the destruction of the spoiled rice. To his colleagues who were worried, he repeated: "Do I live for Christ or not? [...] As a Christian, I cannot accept sacrificing the lives of others. It is better to die than to accept this money."

Floribert's stubborn refusal to give in to corruption sealed his fate. On Saturday, July 7, 2007, he was abducted by unknown individuals. During his captivity, he was horribly tortured by his jailers who tried to break him. He succumbed to his injuries on the night of July 7 to 8, 2007, at the age of 26. His body, bearing marks of violent abuse (broken arm, broken teeth, burns), was found on July 9, 2007, near the Free University of the Great Lakes Countries (ULPGL) in Goma.

Upon the announcement of his death, the then-Bishop of Goma, Mgr Faustin Ngabu, declared: "Floribert Bwana Chui died because of his honesty. He is someone who knew how to maintain his freedom in an extremely difficult situation. What he experienced was a strong manifestation of his Christian faith."

Floribert's reputation for holiness and martyrdom spread rapidly. In September 2015, Mgr Théophile Kaboy, then Bishop of Goma, requested the opening of his cause for beatification, which received the Nihil obstat from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The diocesan inquiry took place in Goma from March 2015 to December 2018.

On February 2, 2023, during his apostolic visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pope Francis spoke at length about Floribert Bwana Chui before 65,000 young people gathered at the Martyrs' Stadium in Kinshasa, presenting him as a model of honesty, prayer, and resistance to corruption. On November 25, 2024, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the martyrdom of Floribert Bwana Chui "in hatred of the faith" (in odium fidei), thus paving the way for his beatification without the requirement of a miracle.

The beatification ceremony for Floribert Bwana Chui took place on Sunday, June 15, 2025, on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome. Due to persistent insecurity in the Goma region, the celebration was held at the Vatican. It was presided over by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, representing Pope Leo XIV.

The Mass was held in the presence of a large Congolese delegation, including the Blessed's mother, Gertrude Kamara Ntawiha, his brothers, Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo (Archbishop of Kinshasa), Bishop Willy Ngumbi (Bishop of Goma), as well as hundreds of members of the Community of Sant'Egidio who came from all over the world. During the ceremony, the jacket that Floribert was wearing on the day of his abduction was presented as a relic. His liturgical memorial is set for July 8, the day of his birth into Heaven.

On July 8, 2025, during a solemn Mass in Goma, the remains of Blessed Floribert Bwana Chui were transferred from his original cemetery to a specially prepared tomb within the Cathedral of Saint Joseph in Goma.

The spirituality of Floribert Bwana Chui was deeply Eucharistic and nourished by the daily reading of the Word of God. His personal Bible, worn by constant reading, is today preserved and venerated in Rome, in the Basilica of Saint Bartholomew on the Island, which has become the sanctuary of the new martyrs of the 20th and 21st centuries. His legacy is summarized by the three pillars of the Community of Sant'Egidio: prayer, the poor, and peace. Pope Leo XIV, receiving the Congolese pilgrims in the aftermath of the beatification, emphasized that Floribert's strength to resist corruption had matured in a conscience formed by prayer and fraternal communion. Floribert is today considered the first contemporary martyr of the fight against corruption in Africa. His example inspires many young people and civil servants across the continent. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Congolese Control Office (OCC) has established July 8th as a national day for the awakening of professional conscience and the fight against corruption, and has had busts and commemorative plaques installed in his memory in its various provincial directorates.