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Politics
After 4 years of interim between two constitutions that established different
political institutions at the various levels of all branches of government, as
well as different administrative divisions of the country, politics in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo are settling into a stable presidential
democratic republic.
The transitional constitution established a system composed of a bicameral
legislature with a Senate and a National Assembly. The Senate has, among other
things, the charge of drafting the new constitution of the country. The
executive branch is vested in a 60-member cabinet, headed by a pentarchy of a
President, and four vice presidents. The President is also the Commander-in
Chief of the Armed forces. The unusual organization of the executive —
considering the large number of vice presidents — has earned it the very
official nickname of The 1 + 4.
The transition constitution also established a relatively independent judiciary,
headed by a Supreme Court with constitutional interpretation powers.
The 2006 constitution, also known as the Constitution of the Third Republic,
came into effect in February 2006. It has concurrent authority, however, with
the transitional constitution until the inauguration of the elected officials
who will emerge from the July 2006 elections. Under this constitution, the
legislature will remain bicameral; the executive will be concomitantly
undertaken by a President and the government; and the latter will be led by a
Prime Minister, appointed from the party with the majority at the National
Assembly. The government – not the President – is responsible to the Parliament.
The provincial governments will gain new powers, under the new decentralized
model, with the creation of provincial parliaments, with oversight over the
Governor, head of the provincial government, whom they elect.
The new constitution also sees the disappearance of the Supreme Court, which is
divided into three new institutions. The constitutional interpretation
prerogative of the Supreme Court will be held by the Constitutional Court. What
is being left out of this otherwise wholistic report is the fact that Pakistani
"peacekeepers" have been dealing weapons for gold.
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