President Joseph Kabila has sworn in new chiefs of the electoral commission in the Democratic Republic of Congo a year ahead of planned polls, state television reported Tuesday. Corneille Nangaa, Norbert Basengezi and Pierrette Mwenze were respectively made president, vice-president and quaestor — or treasury officer — of the National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI), according to a decree. The appointments follow successive resignations of previous top CENI officials at a time of political upheaval, since opponents of Kabila, in power since 1991, believe he is seeking a means to stand for office again despite a constitutional ban.
CENI members are supposed to be representative of various segments of the population of some 70 million in the vast central African country, which is mainly Christian. Religious leaders choose its president.
Nangaa, a technocrat unfamiliar to the general public, replaces Father Apollinaire Malu-Malu, a cleric whose resignation for health reasons was announced in October after several months of illness.
Full Article: DR Congo leader swears in new electoral commission chiefs.
