KINSHASA, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Vital Kamerhe, former deputy prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), was sworn in on Friday as the speaker of the National Assembly, the lower house of the country's parliament.
Kamerhe, the leader of the Union for the Congolese Nation party, officially assumed office after a handover ceremony with former Speaker Christophe Mboso, who was elected on Wednesday as the second vice president. Kamerhe secured 371 of the 407 votes cast in Wednesday's leadership bureau election for the National Assembly.
Kamerhe underlined the importance of strengthening the credibility and effectiveness of parliamentary institutions, reaffirming his determination to restore the dignity of national deputies.
Kamerhe, 65, was appointed as deputy prime minister and minister of national economy last year.
The ceremony followed a failed "coup attempt" at his residence on Sunday, as deemed by DRC authorities. His residence was raided by a group of armed men early Sunday in Kinshasa, the DRC capital. The coup attempt was "nipped in the bud" by defense forces, said Sylvain Ekenge, spokesperson for the DRC military.
In the general elections held in December 2023, President Felix Tshisekedi was re-elected for a second term, as the Sacred Union, a parliamentary coalition composed of Tshisekedi's Union of Democracy and Social Progress party and its allied parties, won the majority of seats at the 500-member National Assembly.
However, the lower house had remained paralyzed due to the absence of a leadership bureau, which includes posts such as president, first vice-president and second vice-president.
More than four months after Tshisekedi was sworn in for a second term, the DRC has yet to form a new government.
In early April, Tshisekedi appointed Judith Tuluka Suminwa as the new prime minister. Tuluka was also a target of the failed coup attempt, but the assailants failed to locate her residence. According to local media reports on Friday, Tuluka has already submitted her selections for the future cabinet to Tshisekedi, who will make the final decision.
According to the DRC Constitution, a new government takes office only after the lower house approves the new prime minister's national program with an absolute majority. ■
