What now that President Tshisekedi has taken control?

President Felix Tshisekedi consolidated power in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2020 by dismantling his coalition with former President Joseph Kabila's FCC. Through the strategic appointment of constitutional court judges, the removal of key FCC figures from the National Assembly and state enterprises, and the imprisonment of rival Vital Kamerhe, Tshisekedi effectively ended the FCC's dominance to seek a new parliamentary majority.

• President Felix Tshisekedi consolidated power in 2020 by neutralizing his primary political rivals, Vital Kamerhe and former President Joseph Kabila. Kamerhe was sentenced to 20 years in prison due to a corruption scandal, while Kabila's political platform, the Front Commun pour le Congo (FCC), faced instability.
• Tshisekedi weakened Kabila's influence through strategic appointments and removals, including the dismissal of Albert Yuma from Gecamines and the suspension of military intelligence chief Delphin Kahimbi in February. A critical blow occurred in October when Tshisekedi appointed three new judges to the constitutional court, an institution that had previously served as a pillar of Kabila's power and had justified election delays and the 2018 results.
• On 6 December, President Tshisekedi officially ended the ruling coalition between his Cap pour le Changement (CACH) platform and Kabila's FCC, citing the breakdown of the coalition and the FCC's boycott of the inauguration of new constitutional court judges.
• Tshisekedi moved to shift power in the National Assembly by challenging the FCC's majority of 338. On 10 December, 283 of 483 present MPs supported a petition regarding the improper handling of parliamentary financial matters, resulting in the removal of FCC President of the National Assembly Jeanine Mabunda and her bureau.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2020). What now that President Tshisekedi has taken control? https://saiia.org.za/research/what-now-that-president-tshisekedi-has-taken-control/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. What now that President Tshisekedi has taken control? 2020. https://saiia.org.za/research/what-now-that-president-tshisekedi-has-taken-control/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=What now that President Tshisekedi has taken control? |date=17 December 2020 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/what-now-that-president-tshisekedi-has-taken-control/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2020what, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{What now that President Tshisekedi has taken control?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/what-now-that-president-tshisekedi-has-taken-control/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }