Kinshasa: Opposition politician Moise Katumbi will appear before a prosecutor in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Monday over government allegations he recruited foreign mercenaries.

Katumbi — who plans to run against President Joseph Kabila in elections due this year — has been summoned by the public prosecutor in Lubumbashi in the southeast of the country as part of an inquiry into his alleged use of mercenaries.

“He has absolutely nothing to hide,” said Olivier Kamitatu, of G7, a coalition of seven opposition parties supporting Katumbi’s candidature.

Kamitatu called for international observers to be present at the hearing to avoid any miscarriage of justice.

Katumbi, 51, who went over to the opposition in September 2015 after resigning as governor and quitting the president’s party, is a major figure in the political scene of the giant central African country.

A wealthy businessman, he is also head of the prestigious Tout-Puissant Mazembe football club, three-time winner of the African Champions League.

On Wednesday, Justice Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba said he had ordered a probe into the allegations that Katumbi had recruited foreign mercenaries including Americans and South Africans.

Katumbi described the accusations as a “grotesque lie,”,saying his opponents were “simply looking to harm me” and that he would never take up arms to secure power. The same day, Katumbi confirmed he would accept an opposition coalition’s nomination as its presidential candidate.

DR Congo authorities are under pressure from the international community to hold the presidential poll as planned in November before Kabila’s second — and constitutionally last — mandate ends.

The following day Katumbi asked the UN mission in the country for protection, saying he felt he was “in danger.”