M23’s newly appointed Governor of North Kivu Province, Bahati ’Erasto’ Musanga Joseph, made these remarks following his official inauguration on February 6, 2025.

North Kivu’s former governor, Maj. Gen. Peter Cirimwami, was shot by M23 fighters on the front lines during a recent battle with government forces.

Videos circulated on social media on January 27, 2025—the day M23 seized control of Goma—showed large numbers of inmates running out of the prison.

Bahati stated that the escaped prisoners who remain at large are among the "problems" facing the new administration.

"This city is facing three major problems. The first is that the prison was holding criminals. All of those criminals have been released; they are now out. They escaped—the government freed them before we arrived here [in Goma]," he told the media.

He added that the new leadership of North Kivu is working with local authorities to apprehend "all criminals" seeking to disrupt security, including the escaped inmates from Munzenze Prison.

Governor Bahati stated that the new administration will arrest those seeking to disrupt Goma's security.