Michel Kuka Mboladinga - di man for Afcon 2025 wey become Lumumba

Di 2025 Afcon dey serve top football action for di pitch so far – now di competition don reach di business end.

Small small, we go find out who go win di tournament.

But beyond di football for ground, oda tins dey happun for di tournament.

One iconic fan Michel Kuka Mboladinga bin dey trend for matchdays wey involve DR Congo and oda teams.

Already pipo dey call am di star for dis 2025 Afcon - even though he no be footballer, or coach or technical team member for DR Congo.

Michel Kuka Mboladinga almost become di unofficial poster boy even though he no open mouth tok even one word.

Michel Kuka Mboladinga become meme for Morocco as im unique Lumumba pose like di statue for stadium dey attract many pipo.

E bin dey wear colourful yellow or grey jacket, sometimes white and blue shirt wit tie, wey e dey stand as he raise his hand for air like Lumumba im statue, for di whole football game.

Videos and foto of Michel Mboladinga, don go viral on top social media, wey pipo across di world don dey interested to know who Patrice Lumumba be and why Congolese pipo dey honour im memory wit such dedication.

Algeria apologize afta dia player 'mock' di Congolese superfan wey dress as Lumumba

Di Algerian football federation apologize to Michel Mboladinga afta dia player Mohamed Amoura face social media pressure wen im copy wetin Mboladinga dey do, bifor e fall to ground like say di statue don fall, during im celebration.

Di 25-year-old player now post apology on top im Instagram say "e neva mean to disrespect DR Congo."

"For dat moment, I neva dey aware of wetin di pesin or di symbol for di stands dey mean; I just try to joke around without any bad feeling," Amoura tok.

Afta dat game wen Algeria sama DR Congo to comot dem for di tournament – Mboladinga dey sad.

E comot im eye glass and clean some tears for face.

Na so di Algerian football federation reach out to am afta Amoura apology wey dem send dia media officer to present Mboladinga wit Algeria jersey wit di name 'Lumumba" for di back of di shirt.

Days afta, Nigerian striker Akor Adams pay tribute to Lumumba afta im score when Nigeria defeat Algeria 2-0 for di quarterfinal of di tournament.

Di Sevilla striker run to di touchline wey e follow Mboladinga do di iconic sign – e raise one hand for air, wey he stand still like statue for few seconds.

Who be Patrice Lumumba wey dem dey pay tribute to, for dis Afcon

Lumumba no be pesin wey dem dey see and celebrate as hero for DR Congo alone; around di continent, e dey regarded as one of di leading voices for di anti-colonial movement for Africa.

Im become di first prime minister for di kontri at 34 years wey e bin play ogbonge role as di kontri gain independence from Belgium for 1960.

For di handover ceremony for June 1960, Lumumba bin speak out boldly about di violence and human suffering wey di pipo of Congo bin go through for di hands of dia colonisers.

Dis speech vex di Belgium authorities no be small as dem shock say one black African fit humiliate dia King and officials.

By September of 1960, wahala start within di military of DR Congo as one colonel Joseph Mobutu declare coup.

For December, dem capture Lumumba and two of im men, and by January 1961, supported by di govment of Belgium, dem kpai Lumumba and im men by firing squad and bury dia bodi for shallow graves.

But as di Belgian authority fear say pipo fit discova Lumumba bodi, dem dig up di corpse, carry am to anoda far location and bury am again, and den dig am up again, take saw pieces di bodi and den dissolve am for acid.

Di Belgium policeman wey supervise dis atrocity later confess and e tok say e keep one tooth of Lumumba wey no gree dissolve for di acid.

Belgium return di Congolese hero golden tooth for 2022

For 2002, di Belgium govment apologise to DR Congo, wey dem return dat one tooth of Lumuba wey remain, for im family to give am proper burial.

His daughter Juliana Lumumba wey go Brussels to receive di tooth remember di times she go dey her papa im office when im dey work as prime minister; at dat time, she be only five years.

She say her papa "belong to di kontri sake of he die for Congo and for his own values and dignity of di African pesin".

Juliana tok BBC news at di time say di handover of di tooth for Belgium to return to DR Congo be "symbolic sake of wetin remain neva be enough but he gatz to come back to his kontri wia dem kill am."

Dem later parade di tooth around di kontri for pipo to pay dia last respects wey dem do state burial for dia icon.

Dem later build mausoleum wey dey symbolize national reconciliation and remembrance for dia independent hero.

For years, di Lumumba family neva sabi exactly wetin happun to dia papa as officials close mouth about di circumstances wey lead to his death.

Lumumba im journey from prime minister to victim of assassination no last for more than seven months.

DR Congo dey celebrate am as dia hero wey he also be regarded as pan-African icon.

Wetin Michel Mboladinga – di DR Congo superfan don show for dis tournament, don dey show say di Afcon no just dey crown champions, sometimes e don dey revive legacies.