DRC president's sister named in Panama Papers

DRC president's sister named in Panama Papers

04/04/2016

Joseph Kabila

Kinshasa – Democratic Republic of Congo lawmaker Jaynet Desiree Kabila Kyungu opened an offshore company account soon after her brother, President Joseph Kabila, assumed the presidency in 2001, according to the Panama Papers.

Jaynet, who is Kabila's twin sister, reportedly opened up Keratsu Holding Limited, which was incorporated into Niue on June 19, 2001. 

Jaynet Kabila

Jaynet appeared as co-director, along with Congolese businessman Kalume Nyembwe Feruzi.

She was believed to have relations with Feruzi, as his (Feruzi's) father was a confidant of Jaynet's father, the late Laurent Desire Kabila. 

Keratsu Holding Ltd has stakes in one of the major mobile phone operators in the central African country.

Jaynet is also the president of the Laurent Desire Kabila Foundation, named after her father. She is also an owner of Digital Congo, a television, internet and radio conglomerate.

Tensions

In 2015, French weekly magazine Jeune Afrique rated her as the most influential person in Kabila's administration.

Jaynet is known for her secrecy and meticulousness.
The revelations have come at a time when tensions are high throughout DRC, as political and religious leaders, activists, students, and others have spoken out against proposed changes to the country's constitution and other proposals that would allow Kabila to stay in power for longer than the two consecutive terms currently permitted.

The Panama Papers are a tranche of millions of leaked financial documents detailing a trove of billions sheltered in tax havens, and pocketed by political power players around the world. 

The documents were leaked from Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca and published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

They are an unprecedented investigation that reveals the offshore links of some of the world's most prominent figures.

The investigators spent at least a year sifting through 11.5 million leaked files to expose the offshore holdings of world political leaders, links to global scandals, and details of the hidden financial dealings of fraudsters, drug traffickers, billionaires, celebrities and sports stars.

The trove of documents is likely the biggest leak of inside information in history. It includes nearly 40 years of data from a little-known, but powerful, law firm based in Panama.

News24