Double Blow: The real reason why Koffi Olomide's Kenyan show was put on hold

It appears the king of Rumba Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba popularly known as Koffi Olomide might have to miss out on giving his father a decent send off.

Following Koffi’s decade old ban in France, he is still struggling to find ways of giving his father, Charles Agbepa Mumba, who died in a Paris hospital a send off.

This follows shortly another setback after he lost his musical father cum mentor Papa Wemba who died on stage while performing at Femua Festival in Ivory Coast.

Apart from being barred from participating in Papa Wemba's funeral processions last month, close sources from Democratic Republic of Congo reveal that Koffi is unable to participate in funeral processions for his biological father, at least in Europe.  

“There is no denying that Koffi has been going through a very tough time but for serious and urgent cases like this one it would have been in his best interests to solve his case in France before things get out of hand,” said a concerned source from Kinshasa.

For years now Europe in particular France has remained a no -go zone for the undisputed king of Rumba whose fame has continued to rise over the years.

This follows three counts of rape charges and illegal confinement filed against him by three of his former backup dancers.

The first complaint was in 2006 while the other two followed in 2008. According to reports one of the plaintiffs was a minor at the time of the alleged sexual assaults.Since then Koffi Olomide has been banned from staging concerts in Europe

On top of this Koffi Olomide who is also among the musicians perceived as allied to the Kabila government have continuously faced protests by opposition activists based in various European cities every time they try to perform.

A close source revealed that efforts by a number of renowned Congolese musicians to stage shows in Paris have been futile with them being greeted with catcalls and insults whenever they arrive in Paris for the scheduled concerts.

Meanwhile, back in Kenya, Koffi much anticipated show which was earlier slotted for late April before being rescheduled to May 7, has been put on hold.

“ We feel that Koffi needs more time to sort out his family issues and find a way of giving his father a good send off before we can embark on proceeding with the show,” said Promoter Jules Nsana who added that he already paid Koffi for the show and that when the time is right he will come.