Скачать или смотреть ZAIRE: PARLIAMENT MEET TO DECIDE WHO SHOULD BE NEXT PRIME MINISTER

(25 Mar 1997) French/Nat

Opposition members of parliament in Zaire have met Tuesday to talk over who should be the next Prime Minister following the resignation of Leon Kengo wa Dondo - who was hand picked by President Mobutu.

Rebels now control much of eastern Zaire - nearly a third of the mineral-rich central African country - and the Zairean government is struggling to unite and deal with the crisis.

Zaire's capital, Kinshasa, may be hundreds of miles from the rebels' frontline but the impact of their success is cutting right to the heart of the Zairean government.

While life goes on in a relatively normal fashion for the people of Kinshasa, there's no escaping the country's deepening crisis.

Parliament voted last week to oust Prime Minister Leon Kengo wa Dondo - who was handpicked by President Mobutu Seso Seko.

But it was only on Sunday that he finally handed in his resignation to the ailing Mobutu, who only returned to Zaire last week after months of treatment in Europe for prostate cancer .

Mobutu has yet to formally accept his Prime Minister's resignation but opposition politicians met on Monday at the parliament to discuss his possible successor.

One man who has been tipped as a possible candidate gave his wholehearted backing to President Mobutu.

SOUNDBITE: (French)
"Of course, President Mobutu will remain the head of state."
Q:"Is he still capable of running the state?"
A: "Of course, he's capable you saw him yourself".
SUPER CAPTION: Jean Bemba, President of the Chamber of Commerce

Desperate for information of any new developments, people scan the newspapers displayed on a wall, for stories on Kengo's resignation and the latest rebel advances.

There's also plenty of talk about the upcoming summit of the Organisation of African Unity (O-A-U) summit in Togo.

There is pressure on for Mobutu to hold direct talks with the rebels but an adviser to the president said Zaire's crisis was not down to just Mobutu or to the rebel leader Laurent Kabila to solve.

He said it goes beyond Zaire's borders and has implications for the entire central African region.

SOUNDBITE: (French)
"Zaire doesn't belong to those two individuals alone (Mobutu and Kabila) it is a national problem and international because it touches on the security of Zaire and the security of the whole region, so if we negotiate we should negotiate with those who are responsible who can engage in enforcing security, the political situation first of all of our country and of the other regions".
SUPER CAPTION: Honore Ngbanda - Adviser to President Mobutu

But there are some in Kinshasa who have had enough of being dictated to - they want proper elections so they can have a real choice in who will run the country.

SOUNDBITE: (French)
"Why can't the Zairean people express their own opinion and choose their own candidates? Why is each time a candidate forced upon us - first Mobutu was imposed on us, now Kabila will be imposed on us - then after that it'll be another one imposed on us. We want to choose our own candidate".
SUPER CAPTION: VOXPOP

Much importance is being placed on Wednesday's summit in Togo - it could be the government's only chance to resolve the crisis before more of the country falls into rebel hands.

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