Congo reshuffles cabinet to bring onboard opposition members

Kinshasa: The Congolese government has reshuffled its cabinet which now includes opposition members in an effort to cobble together support across the remaining regions where the government still retains control.

In a television address by the government spokesperson, Tina Salama, late Thursday, the government announced the 53 members of the new cabinet, including

Adolphe Muzito, a former prime minister under former President Joseph Kabila as the vice prime minister in charge of the budget.

More than 90 per cent of the old cabinet members have been retained.

The incumbent president, Felix Tshisekedi, defeated Kabila in 2019, putting an end to the latter’s 18-year rule of the central African country.

Direct talks in Doha scheduled for Friday between the Congolese government and the M23 rebel group will not take place as neither party has travelled there.