Bruno Tshibala | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 25th Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
| In office 18 May 2017 – 7 September 2019 | |
| President | Joseph Kabila Félix Tshisekedi |
| Deputy | Léonard She Okitundu |
| Preceded by | Samy Badibanga |
| Succeeded by | Sylvestre Ilunga Ilukamba |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 February 1956 Gandajika, Belgian Congo (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) |
| Political party | Union for Democracy and Social Progress |
| Alma mater | Marien Ngouabi University |
Bruno Tshibala Nzenze (born 20 February 1956) is a Congolese politician who served as Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2017–2019.[1][2][3]
He finished primary and secondary education in Lubumbashi and studied law at the Marien Ngouabi University in Brazzaville.
He began his political career while still a student in April 1980 at the age of 24 when he joined a leftist political party in Zaire during the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko.[4] In December 1980, he, along with 13 parliamentarians wrote a letter to ask President Mobutu for democratic reforms while the country was still under the one-party system.
On 7 April 2017, then-President Joseph Kabila appointed him as Prime Minister during a nationwide televised address. He took office on 18 May 2017.[5][6]
In 2019, Tshibala made a bid to serve as a DRC Senator, but lost the Senate election on 15 March.[7]
On 9 October 2016, he was arrested at N'djili International Airport when he was about to board a plane to Brussels and was held at Makala Central Prison. The country's Attorney General accused him of organizing demonstrations on 19 and 20 September 2016 in Kinshasa. He was later granted a provisional release on 29 November 2016.[8]