Independent National Electoral Commission (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

The Independent National Electoral Commission (French: Commission Électorale Nationale Indépendante or CENI) is the body that runs elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

CENI Headquarters in Kinshasa
A CENI election official speaks to the Voice of America

This organization was tasked with executing the country's 2016 general election. However, it delayed the election until 2018 "because the number of voters isn’t known."[1] The country's political opposition has alleged that the country's president Joseph Kabila is trying to remain in power after his constitutionally mandated term expires.[2]

CENI's bank accounts are held at the BGFIBank Group.[3] It held US$55 million as of May 2016.[3] The same month, it borrowed an additional US$25 million from the BFGIBank,[3] with $2.4 million in fees.[4] According to Le Monde, the 2016 presidential elections were postponed on the grounds that the CENI lacked sufficient funds to register voters.[3]

In October 2021, the president of the National Assembly gave 72 hours to the eight religious denominations to come to an agreement. They meet to try to agree on the name of the future president of the Ceni.[5]

CENI's president is Denis Kadima Kazadi.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Wilson, Thomas; Mbatha, Amogelgang (29 September 2016). "Congo Election Body Proposes Two-Year Wait for Presidential Vote". Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  2. ^ "DR Congo election: 17 dead in anti-Kabila protests". BBC News. BBC. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Mannier, Xavier (December 22, 2016). "Jean-Jacques Lumumba, banquier congolais exilé et dénonciateur du système Kabila". Le Monde. Retrieved December 23, 2016. La BGFI est en effet une banque très politique qui héberge notamment les comptes de la Commission électorale nationale et indépendante (CENI). C'est cette institution qui, faute de moyens pour recenser l'électorat, a demandé au président de reporter l'élection présidentielle aux calendes grecques et fournit à la majorité présidentielle l'argumentaire pour que Joseph Kabila se maintienne au pouvoir après l'expiration de son mandat, ce 19 décembre.
  4. ^ Kavanagh, Michael; Wild, Franz; Wilson, Thomas (November 1, 2016). "Congo Election Body Said to Pay Millions to Kabila-Tied Bank". Bloomberg. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
  5. ^ "RDC: nouvelle réunion des confessions religieuses pour désigner un président à la Céni". Radio France International. Radio France International. 2 October 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  6. ^ "RDC : Denis Kadima prend la tête d'une Ceni déjà controversée". Jeune Afrique. Jeune Afrique. 16 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
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