DR Congo Parliament President Resigns

Vital Kamerhe resigned from his position as President of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Monday afternoon, September 22, citing personal reasons. The 66-year-old has faced accusations of opaque bookkeeping in the lower house’s finances, rushing votes. Unofficially, Kamerhe was also seen by some as not being vocal enough in supporting President Félix Tshisekedi. Kamerhe’s stance on issues such as the proposed constitutional reform which critics of Tshisekedi view as a way to allow him to run for a third term, “was perceived as distancing himself from Presid

Vital Kamerhe resigned from his position as President of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Monday afternoon, September 22, citing personal reasons. The 66-year-old has faced accusations of opaque bookkeeping in the lower house’s finances, rushing votes. Unofficially, Kamerhe was also seen by some as not being vocal enough in supporting President Félix Tshisekedi. Kamerhe’s stance on issues such as the proposed constitutional reform which critics of Tshisekedi view as a way to allow him to run for a third term, “was perceived as distancing himself from President Tshisekedi,” Congolese political analyst Christian Moleka told AFP. Long considered a power broker in Congolese politics, Kamerhe previously held the same position from 2006 to 2009 under Tshisekedi’s predecessor, Joseph Kabila. He later backed Tshisekedi after the two broke away from an opposition alliance in 2019, a dramatic shift that paved the way for Tshisekedi’s first four-year term as president. I n return, Tshisekedi appointed Kamerhe as his chief of staff, a post he held until 2020, when he was sentenced to 20 years of hard labor on charges of embezzling more than $50 million earmarked for building soldiers’ housing. Following his release a year later and subsequent acquittal on appeal in 2022, Kamerhe returned to frontline politics. He served as Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister in 2023 before being re-elected President of the National Assembly a year later. In May 2024, armed men attacked Kamerhe’s home in Kinshasa’s upscale Gombe district before moving toward Tshisekedi’s offices nearby, in what the Congolese government described as a failed coup d’état.