Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila, who overnight sacked the cabinet he inherited from his assassinated father, has clearly put his own stamp on government.
He came under fire Thursday from the political opposition, however, for travelling too much while failing to visit parts of his war-devastated country.
The 29-year-old president, who took over the reins of government on January 26 following the murder of his father by a bodyguard, fired his cabinet just before leaving for a two-day visit to Germany late Wednesday.
The sacking was widely seen here as a sign the young president is growing in confidence and stature at the helm of the vast central African nation as it starts edging towards peace.
The former army commander started making changes last month after initially retaining the team his father had put together on November 20 last year. Such politicians entrusted him with his new job.
However, cabinet chief Theophile Mbemba said in a statement broadcast on state television late Wednesday that the entire government had been dismissed due to the "torpor and dislocation observed in public activity for some time".
Outgoing ministers were "charged with carrying out current business" until the nomination of a new cabinet.
All state visits by ministers were suspended, except those already in progress, while an audit will be carried out in state-owned companies covering the period since Joseph Kabila took over.
On his return from Germany, Kabila will begin the process of appointing a new government, Mbemba added.
On Thursday, one opposition leader, Joseph Olenghakoy, spoke out against Kabila's trips and urged Botswanan former president Ketumile Masire, the "facilitator" named by his African peers to help in the peace process, to convene inter-Congolese talks by April 30 with a view to a "new political order." – KINSHASA (AFP)
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