Katumba mwanke biography of michael

Augustin Katumba Mwanke, one of the most important political leaders in the Congo, died this afternoon in a plane crash in Bukavu.

According to preliminary reports, the pilots misjudged the descent and slid the plane off the runway. Katumba, who had taken his seatbelt off after the plane touched down, was catapulted forward and died.

Katumba mwanke biography of michael

Several other regime stalwarts were on the flight and were seriously injured, including Antoine Ghonda (roaming ambassador), Matata Ponyo (finance minister) and Marcellin Cisambo  (governor of South Kivu). I have not heard any suspicions that the crash was caused intentionally.

Katumba – or AKM, as he was often called – is probably the only senior figure in Joseph Kabila’s inner circle to have weathered the ups-and-downs of his presidency and to have remained by his side throughout the past eleven years.

A business executive I spoke to today in Kinshasa told me: “[Katumba&rsq