Jaynet Kabila
Jaynet Kabila | |
|---|---|
| Member of the National Assembly | |
| Assumed office 2011 | |
| Constituency | Kalemie |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jaynet Désirée Kabila Kyungu 4 June 1971 Hewa Bora, Maquis of Fizi (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse | Felix Wazekwa (m.2006 - 2011) |
| Relations | Joseph Kabila (twin brother) Zoé Kabila (brother) Aimée Kabila Mulengela (alleged half-sister) |
| Parent(s) | Laurent-Désiré Kabila Sifa Mahanya |
Jaynet Désirée Kabila Kyungu (born 4 June 1971) is the daughter of Laurent-Désiré Kabila, the former president of the Democratic Republic of Congo and twin sister of Joseph Kabila, the former President. Kabila was elected as a member of the Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2011, the same year as her other brother Zoé Kabila. Document leaks in 2016 revealed that she is a part-owner of a major Congolese telecom company through offshore subsidiaries.
Early life
[edit]Jaynet Kabila and her twin brother, Joseph Kabila were born on 4 June 1971 to Sifa Mahanya and Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Although her father would eventually become president of the country, at the time of Jaynet Kabila's birth, Laurent Kabila was a struggling rebel leader at the nadir of his power. The twins were born in Hewa Bora, a small village in the secessionist state of Maquis of Fizi, in the present-day province of South Kivu, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, but it has also been alleged that the twins were actually born in Tanzania.[1]
Career
[edit]Jaynet Kabila first became publicly prominent in 2011 when she was elected as a deputy to the Congolese National Assembly, representing Kalemie as an independent.[2]
Despite her generally low profile, Kabila is a powerful figure in Congolese politics, as the owner of Congolese media conglomerate Digital Congo.[3] and as of 2015 has been described as the most influential member of her brother's entourage.[4]
In March 2024, Jaynet Kabila was interviewed by military intelligence, after a search at the headquarters of the foundation dedicated to his late father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila, in Kinshasa.[5]
Offshore holdings
[edit]On 3 April 2016, the Panama Papers investigative reporting project revealed that Kyungu hired Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca to create a company called Keratsu Holding Limited in Niue on 19 June 2001, just a few months after her brother became president.[3] According to the documents released, Kyungu was a co-director of Keratsu Holding Limited with Congolese businessman Kalume Nyembwe Feruzi,[6] the son of a close ally of Kyungu's father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila.
Keratsu Holding Limited owns a 19 percent stake in Congolese Wireless Network SPRL, which in turn has a 49 percent stake in Vodacom Congo SPRL.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ Gates, Henry Louis; Akyeampong, Emmanuel; Niven, Steven (2012). Dictionary of African Biography, Volume 2. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 246–50. ISBN 978-0195382075. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- ^ "Kabila's twin sister, brother, elected to Parliament". SABC News. South African Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- ^ a b "Panama Papers The Power Players". ICIJ.org. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- ^ "RDC : Jaynet Kabila, la soeur jumelle qui murmure à l'oreille du président". Jeuneafrique.com. Jeune Afrique. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- ^ "RDC : Jaynet Kabila auditionnée par les renseignements militaires". Jeuneafrique.com. Jeune Afrique. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
- ^ "Primar Document". ICIJ. International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- ^ Kavanagh, Michael (26 October 2011). "Congo Court Appoints Administrator for Vodacom Partner CWN". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg LP. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
- 1971 births
- Living people
- Members of the National Assembly (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
- Children of presidents of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Democratic Republic of the Congo twins
- Democratic Republic of the Congo Anglicans
- People from South Kivu
- People named in the Panama Papers
- 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo women politicians