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| Handshake: Outgoing president Joseph Kabila, left, and his successor, Felix Tshisekedi (AFP Photo/TONY KARUMBA) |
Kinshasa (AFP) - Opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi was sworn in on Thursday as president of Democratic Republic of Congo, marking the country's first peaceful handover of power after chaotic and bitterly disputed elections.
Tshisekedi
took the oath of office before receiving the DR Congo flag and a copy of the
constitution from Joseph Kabila, leaving office after 18 turbulent years at the
helm of sub-Saharan Africa's biggest country.
In his
inaugural address, Tshisekedi promised a new era of respect for human rights,
addressing one of the most notorious failings of the Kabila era.
All
political prisoners will be released, Tshisekedi promised, adding that his presidency
would guarantee fundamental freedoms and "banish all forms of
discrimination."
A moment of
drama came when the newly minted president was taken ill during his speech.
After a
12-minute interruption, Tshisekedi returned to the microphone, apologising for
the episode, which he blamed on the stresses of the election campaign.
Thousands of Tshisekedi supporters, many of them dressed in white, celebrated the historic event outside the Palace of the Nation, the seat of the presidency.
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Thousands
of Tshisekedi supporters, many of them dressed in white, celebrated the
historic event outside the Palace of the Nation, the seat of the presidency
(AFP
Photo/John WESSELS)
|
Thousands of Tshisekedi supporters, many of them dressed in white, celebrated the historic event outside the Palace of the Nation, the seat of the presidency.
"We
hope that this will be a real change, especially as he has taken power without
bloodshed," said Saddam Kongolo, a member of Tshisekedi's Union for
Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS).
One of
Tshisekedi's first tasks will be to appoint a prime minister in a move which
will see him sharing power with Kabila's supporters, who hold an overwhelming
majority in parliament.
Turbulence
The
ceremony caps more than two years of turmoil sparked by Kabila's refusal to
step down when he reached the constitutional limit on his term in office.
A country the size of continental western Europe, the former Belgian colony lived through two regional wars in 1996-97 and 1998-2003.
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Profile of
Felix Tshisekedi (AFP Photo/Juliette VILROBE)
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A country the size of continental western Europe, the former Belgian colony lived through two regional wars in 1996-97 and 1998-2003.
The last
two presidential elections, in 2006 and 2011 -- both won by Kabila -- were marred
by bloodshed and dozens died in a crackdown on protests after he chose to
remain in office in 2016.
The ballot,
which took place on December 30 after three postponements, surprised many by
the lack of violence, but a political storm swiftly brewed over the vote count.
Tshisekedi
was declared winner with 38.5 percent of the vote, over his opposition rival
Martin Fayulu, who was credited with 34.8 percent.
Fayulu
branded the result a stitch-up between Kabila and Tshisekedi.
But his legal challenge to the Constitutional Court failed, and foreign support for his position fizzled out.
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Double take
2: Doppelgangers of past DR Congo leaders, with (from left) former
dictator
Mobutu Sese Seko, ex-premier Augustin Matata Ponyo, outgoing president
Kabila,
assassinated president Laurent-Desire Kabila and slain premier Patrice
Lumumba
(AFP Photo/TONY KARUMBA)
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But his legal challenge to the Constitutional Court failed, and foreign support for his position fizzled out.
Praise
for rivals
Tshisekedi
on Thursday offered an olive branch to Fayulu, a notable absentee at the
inauguration, hailing the outspoken critic of Kabila as a "soldier of the
people".
He also
thanked third-placed candidate Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, who was Kabila's
preferred candidate.
And he paid
tribute to his deceased father, Etienne, who launched the UDPS opposition party
in 1980 as a dissenting voice to dictator Mobutu Sese Seko.
After
Tshisekedi senior died in Brussels in February 2017, his son was voted in as
party leader.
His ascent
to the presidency has taken many people aback, for he has never held high
office and failed to match the crowd-pulling popularity of his father.
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Kabila, 47,
has been in power for 18 years, taking over at the age of 29 after his father
Laurent-Desire Kabila was assassinated by a bodyguard (AFP Photo/John WESSELS)
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Many
challenges
Analysts
say Tshisekedi faces a raft of pressing problems.
He must
defuse the anger of Fayulu's supporters, carry out his pledge of ending the
"gangrene" of corruption after the Kabila era, and forge a
power-sharing arrangement with the outgoing president's bloc.
The
pro-Kabila Joint Front for Congo (FCC) controls 337 seats in the 500-member
National Assembly against 102 for Fayulu's coalition, Lamuka, and 46 for
Tshisekedi's coalition, Heading for Change (Cach).
"Tshisekedi
will have little margin for manoeuvre," said Stephanie Wolters at South
Africa's Institute for Security Studies (ISS) think tank.
Kabila
himself will become a senator for life under the constitution. He is widely
expected to wield influence through his supporters.
His family
has acquired a wide range of assets during the many years in power.
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Democratic
Republic of Congo compared to regional neighbours: socio-economic
indicators
(AFP Photo)
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Conflict
and poverty
Beyond
politics, Tshisekedi has to root out brutal militias who control parts of the
country's strife-torn east where an Ebola epidemic is also unfolding.
He also has
to meet expectations about easing poverty, which afflicts the vast majority of
the country's 80 million citizens.
Despite the
poverty, DR Congo boasts a treasure trove of minerals, ranging from gold and
diamonds to copper and coltan -- a mineral essential for the batteries used in
hand-held electronic devices.
Very little
of the wealth trickles down to the poor. The DR Congo ranks a mere 176th on the
189-nation Human Development Index compiled by the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP).
