ASSESSMENTS

Joseph Kabila and the Search for a Pliant Successor

Apr 9, 2018 | 09:00 GMT

Congolese President Joseph Kabila holds a news conference in January 2018.

Congolese President Joseph Kabila holds a press conference in January 2018. Despite rumors that he may try to stay in power indefinitely, Kabila is working to find an appropriate successor to take the reins -- at least officially -- in 2019.

(THOMAS NICOLON/AFP/Getty Images)

Highlights

  • Congolese President Joseph Kabila will not attempt to formally retain power but will try to manage a transition to a successor.
  • Kabila will look for a new leader who can manage the country's political and security systems without being so bold as to pursue corruption charges against him or his family.
  • A U.N. Security Council decision to send a 16,000-strong mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo will likely hinder efforts to conduct electoral fraud.

 

Congolese President Joseph Kabila seems ready to exit stage left, but he's not quite ready to leave the building. Jeune Afrique, a well-respected media outlet that focuses on African affairs, reported in late March that Kabila was carefully weighing potential successors in preparation for general elections Dec. 23. But despite demands from domestic opponents and the international community to finally step down after his term ended in late 2016, Kabila does not appear intent on retreating very far. Instead, the longtime president has begun the search for a malleable character who will permit him to keep pulling the strings from behind the scenes....

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