Congo president - The African Mirror

Jan

2024

Congo President Tshisekedi re-elected, election commission says

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi has been re-elected for a second term after getting more than 73% of the vote in this month's presidential election, the country's election commission said. Announcing the results on Sunday in the capital Kinshasa, Denis Kadima, the head of Congo's national election commission known as the CENI, said Tshisekedi was elected with 73.34% of the vote having obtained over 13 million votes out of over 18 million valid votes. Turnout in the disputed election was at over 43%, Kadima said. Earlier on Sunday a group of Congo's main opposition presidential candidates asked supporters…

Sep

2023

By ANGE ADIHE KASONGO

Congo president asks UN peacekeepers to start packing up this year

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has asked his government to fast-track the withdrawal of a United Nations peacekeeping mission to ensure it begins at the end of the year, he said at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday. The mission, called MONUSCO, took over from an earlier U.N. operation in 2010 to help quell insecurity in the eastern part of the Central African country, where armed groups fight over territory and resources. But its presence has become increasingly unpopular in recent years for what critics say is a failure to protect civilians against militia groups, sparking deadly protests.…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Congo President Tshisekedi brings in former VP Bemba in reshuffle ahead of election

NEWS

STANIS BUJAKERA and SONIA ROLLEY DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi has appointed the country's former vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, who was detained for over 10 years for war crimes, as the country's defence minister in a sweeping government reshuffle. His appointment was part of an overhaul of the 57 members of government, which the president's spokesperson said was "urgent and necessary", in an announcement on Congo's national television late on Thursday. No further details were given. The reshuffle, which was more extensive than observers had predicted, came ahead of an expected presidential election on December 20, in which…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Congo president says unrest in east could disrupt elections

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi said that a conflict with rebels in the east of the country could disrupt preparations for general elections scheduled for December 20. Congo's electoral commission started registering voters on February 17 in North Kivu province, parts of which are occupied by the M23 rebel group, a Tutsi-led militia that has been waging an offensive against Congolese troops for almost a year. The fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, raising concerns about the state's ability to prepare for the parliamentary and presidential elections later this year. "The persistence of the war in the east…