Former President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Joseph Kabila, has called time on his own self-imposed exile in South Africa and return to his restive homeland.
Kabila, who has been residing in South Africa since December 2023, intends to re-enter DR Congo through the epicentre of the current conflict - eastern region.
"After six years of complete retreat, one year in exile, and in light of the escalating security crisis, I have decided to return to the DR Congo without delay, in order to play a role in seeking a solution,” Kabila told Jeune Afrique in an interview the French language continental magazine published on April 8, 2025.
In March 2025, Kabila announced he had been forced to suspend his studies due to the worsening security situation in eastern DR Congo.
“I had to put my studies on hold two or three months ago in order to make time for what’s happening back home,” he told a Namibian media outlet.
Kabila's decision to return via the eastern region will has already stirred debate in the vast central African nation.
It has also given currency to accusations by the government of Felix Tshisekedi that he has been in the shadows of the rebels who have captured the two major eastern cities of Goma and Bukavu of the two Kivus.
Foreign minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner recently said the Congolese government does not require Joseph Kabila’s involvement in resolving the security crisis in the eastern part of the country.
In his defence, Kabila, born on June 4, 1971, in Hewa Bora, South Kivu, explained the decision as hinged on the fact that “there are dangers at home”.
But during the last presidential elections in 2023, Tshisekedi repeatedly popped up the narrative that the man he succeeded, the man who had controversially installed him, was the one behind the rebels.
"Joseph Kabila boycotted the election and is preparing an insurrection because he is the AFC," Tshisekedi told his supporters.
The AFC or the Alliance Fleuve Congo is part of the coalition comprising various rebel factions, including the M23.
Tshisekedi further elaborated on Kabila's alleged role, saying: "The AFC, it's him."
And during his many darting runs to Europe to lobby for support against the marauding rebels his own troops were helpless against, Tshisekedi told the Munich Security Conference in Germany in February what he really thought about Kabila.
"The real sponsor of the opposition that took up arms in complicity with Rwanda is hiding: it is Joseph Kabila," he said without adducing evidence.
"He does not admit it and does not assume responsibility for his actions."
Kabila, 53, assumed presidency on January 17, 2001, following the assassination of his father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila.
He was subsequently elected in 2006 and re-elected in 2011. After his second term, he stepped down in January 2019, handing power to Tshisekedi.
Kabila and Tshisekedi's alliance began to deteriorate in early 2020, primarily due to disagreements over the composition of the electoral commission and the appointment of judges to the Constitutional Court.
Tensions escalated when Tshisekedi appointed three new judges to the court without consensus, a move perceived by Kabila's camp as a breach of their power-sharing agreement.
This action led to a significant realignment in parliament, with many of Kabila's allies defecting to Tshisekedi's new coalition, the Sacred Union of the Nation.
The rift deepened further when Tshisekedi accused Kabila of supporting the M23, contributing to the collapse of their coalition and the subsequent formation of a new majority under Tshisekedi's leadership.
In December 2023, Kabila slipped out of DR Congo and resurfaced in January 2024 in South Africa, where he had enrolled in a postgraduate program at the University of Johannesburg.
From exile, Kabila has continued to express his opinion about the Congolese people's commitment to peace, telling South African national broadcaster Sabc: "We are ready to work and still work for peace, actively work for peace and that was our attitude 22 years ago when we came to Sun City."
In December 2024, he met with opposition leaders Moïse Katumbi and Claudel Lubaya in Addis Ababa. And in February 2025, he published an opinion article in the Sunday Times, focusing specifically on the security and governance crises plaguing his country.
He accused Tshisekedi of being the root cause of all the political problems plaguing his homeland.
"The innumerable violations of the Constitution and human rights, as well as repeated massacres of the Congolese population by Tshisekedi’s police and military forces will not end after the successful conclusion of negotiations," he said.
At the height of clashes between M23 and regional forces backing the Kinshasa government, Kabila urged South Africa to re-evaluate its military support for President Tshisekedi, suggesting that continued backing might be misguided.
"Given the history of its member states, Sadc should know better. The grievances of the Congolese people against their government must and should be addressed," Kabila said.
"Congo cannot continue to be this cry-baby in the region talking about how weak it is and how strong everybody else is."
He was also at odds with Tshisekedi's decision to hawk mineral resources in the country to the West in return for backing against the rebels. Kabila insisted the solution to the conflict had to come from within and addressed by its citizens.
"To me, it’s not the right approach but as a Congolese what interests me and what interests the Congolese people is how do we deal with the situation ourselves," he said, cautioning against external interventions
Speaking to Jeune Afrique, Kabila explained that his decision to return came after consultations with several heads of state, former presidents, political actors in the country, and international organizations.
This announcement comes after a period marked by signs of Kabila reemerging into the political scene and regaining media attention.