 At independence on 30 June 1960 , the army suffered from a dramatic deficit of trained leaders , particularly in the officer corps . This was because the Force Publique had always only been officered by Belgian or other expatriate whites . The Belgian Government made no effort to train Congolese commissioned officers until the very end of the colonial period and there were only about 20 African cadets in training on the eve of independence . Ill @-@ advised actions by Belgian officers led to an enlisted ranks ' rebellion on 5 July 1960 , which helped spark the Congo Crisis . Lieutenant General Émile Janssens , the Force Publique commander , wrote during a meeting of soldiers that ' Before independence = After Independence ' , pouring cold water on the soldiers ' desires for an immediate raise in their status . 
