Vital Kamerhe (center) chats with political dialogue participants in Kinshasa, on Sep 1st, 2016
On Thursday September 1st, 2016, the much anticipated political dialogue in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) opened in Kinshasa with a solemn ceremony. The organisation of the political dialogue, facilitated by the African Union envoy, Edem Kodjo, had been in works for some time. Considered improbable at some point because of the opposition refusal to attend, only recently did it become possible when one of the main leaders of the opposition, Vital Kamerhe, decided to change his mind. He leads the National Congolese Union (UNC). Other opposition leaders decided to stay away. They suspect current President Joseph Kabila of seeking to remain in power beyond his current term, using the political dialogue to sanction his decision. President Kabila ends his second and final term in December 2016.
Vital Kamerhe, who has been chosen as the co-chair of the political dialogue, has, in his first speech, called on other opposition leaders to join the dialogue, which, in his opinion is
