Mobutu Sese Seko

Mobutu Sese Seko, born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu on October 14, 1930, was a prominent Congolese politician and military officer who served as the first and only president of Zaire from 1971 until 1997. His political journey began when he became the second president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1965 to 1971, following a coup that deposed the democratically elected government of Patrice Lumumba during the Congo Crisis in 1960.

To solidify his power, Mobutu established the Popular Movement of the Revolution as the sole legal political party in 1967 and renamed the country Zaire in 1971. He adopted the name Mobutu Sese Seko in 1972, reflecting his vision of national authenticity, which aimed to eliminate colonial influences. His regime was marked by totalitarianism and widespread human rights violations, alongside a pervasive cult of personality.

Mobutu's political ideology was characterized as