DRC - Aubin Minaku Ndjalandjoko

CONGO (DRC) - Update on the situation in Congo

January 18, 2026:

January 18, 2026 - CONGO (DRC). Update on the situation in Congo

Arrests/abductions of opponents continue

On the day Pope Leo recalls the dramatic situation in Congo during the traditional Sunday Angelus address*, we receive an update from Dominique Gaillard on the incumbent government's continuing strategy of “kidnapping” opposition leaders.

Gaillard (and HoC) have already reported on the prodigious death sentence forcing the main opposition leader, Joseph Kabila, into hiding abroad, and the kidnapping/arrest of Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, his deputy. Today Gaillard informs us of the abduction/arrest of another opposition leader, Aubin Minaku Ndjalandjoko.

"The national vice-president of the ’Parti du Peuple pour la Reconstruction et la Démocratie" (PPRD), Aubin Minaku Ndjalandjoko, was arrested on the night of Saturday 17 to Sunday 18 January 2026 by Congolese security forces. The operation took place at his residence in Kinshasa, which was completely surrounded by a large security force before the intervention, which took place shortly after midnight. After the arrest, Minaku was taken to a destination that remains unknown.
Up to now, the authorities have not provided any official explanation on the reasons for the interpellation nor on the place of detention of the PPRD leader.
A few hours after the arrest, Ferdinand Kambere, former Minister of Labour, current deputy secretary of the PPRD and now de facto leader of the party after the arrests of Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary and Aubin Minaku, reacted with a very harsh message posted on social media.
In his X account, Kambere openly speaks of “enlèvement” (kidnapping) and accuses the regime of having chosen the path of political repression.

Here is the full Italian translation of his message on X:

"URGENT - KIDNAPPING
A month after the unexplained disappearance of the secretary of the PPRD on the night of 15-16 December 2025, it is now the National Vice-President of the PPRD, Aubin Minaku, who was kidnapped on the night of 17-18 January 2026.
The regime has now definitely inscribed itself in maintaining the crisis and opted for the strategy of terror and hostages.
Where is democracy? Where is the rule of law? Is this the form of dialogue the regime likes?
Enough of these retrograde methods from another era!
Free immediately and unconditionally our comrades Aubin Minaku, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, Dunia Kilanga, Parole Kamizelo, Nathanaël and all the others, detained solely for their opposition membership and political views!"

This official stance reinforces the line of the PPRD, which denounces an authoritarian drift and targeted repression against its leaders.
Aubin Minaku's arrest is part of a context of very high political and security tensions, aggravated by the unstable situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the judicial and security actions targeting several people close to former President Joseph Kabila.
This interpellation follows by a few weeks the arrest of Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, the party's permanent secretary, and comes a month after the reported disappearance of another PPRD leader, fuelling accusations of a systematic strategy of intimidation of the opposition.
Aubin Minaku Ndjalandjoko is a central figure in Congolese political life. A magistrate and law professor, he was one of the most influential men of the Joseph Kabila era. From 2012 to 2019, he served as President of the National Assembly, leading the lower house of parliament and playing a key role in the country's institutional management.
In recent years, he has remained one of the ideological and political pillars of the PPRD, assuming the position of national vice-president of the party. It was only on 16 January 2026, two days before his arrest, that he had publicly participated in the commemorative activities organised by the Fondation Mzee Laurent-Désiré Kabila, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the death of former President Laurent Désiré Kabila, who was killed on 16 January 2001 in his office.
The arrest of Aubin Minaku represents a new breaking point in relations between the ruling power and the opposition, raising profound questions about respect for political freedoms, the rule of law and the future of political dialogue in the Democratic Republic of Congo".

*Dear brothers and sisters, have a good Sunday!
[...] Today I would like to recall in particular the great hardship being suffered by the population in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who are forced to flee their country, especially to Burundi, because of the violence and face a serious humanitarian crisis. We pray that dialogue for reconciliation and peace will always prevail between the conflicting parties.
PAPA LEON XIV, ANGELUS, St Peter's Square, Sunday, 18 January 2026