Zacharie Badiengila, known as Ne Muanda Nsemi, (1946 – 18 October 2023) was a Congolese religious leader and politician. He was leader of the political and religious movement

Bundu dia Kongo Bundu dia Kongo ( Kikongo; "Gathering of Kongo"), known as BDK, is a new religious movement with a political and cultural agenda that is associated with the Kongo ethnic group. It was founded in June 1969 but officially in 1986 by Ne Muanda Ns ...

(BDK).

Biography

Born in Luozi Territory in 1946, Badiengila took on the name Ne Muanda Nsemi, which means "the creative spirit" in

Kikongo Kongo or Kikongo is one of the Bantu languages spoken by the Kongo people living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and Angola. It is a tonal language. The vast majority of present-day speakers li ...

. He resided in

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

and was a chemist by occupation. He considered himself a spiritual heir of

Simon Kimbangu Simon Kimbangu (September 12, 1887 – October 12, 1951) was a Democratic Republic of Congo, Congolese religious leader who founded the Christianity, Christian new religious movement Kimbanguism. Kimbanguists consider him to be an incarnation of ...

, a preacher and prophet of

Kimbanguism Kimbanguism () is a Christianity, para-Christian new religious movement professed by the African initiated church Jesus Christ's Church on Earth by his special envoy Simon Kimbangu (, EJCSK) founded by Simon Kimbangu in the Belgian Congo (today ...

. He also defined himself as a political heir of

Joseph Kasa-Vubu Joseph Kasa-Vubu, alternatively Joseph Kasavubu, ( – 24 March 1969) was a Congolese politician who served as the first President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (the Republic of the Congo until 1964) from 1960 until 1965. A member of ...

, who served as

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and supported the resurrection of the

Kingdom of Kongo The Kingdom of Kongo ( or ''Wene wa Kongo;'' ) was a kingdom in Central Africa. It was located in present-day northern Angola, the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, southern Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. At its gre ...

. Like his mentors, he came from the former

Bas-Congo Kongo Central (), formerly Bas-Congo, is one of the 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Matadi. History At the time of independence, the area now encompassing Kongo Central was part of the greater province of ...

. Nsemi founded the BDK in 1969, but officially created the organization in 1986 to expand into politics, as it was originally a cultural association. He wrote several works in Kikongo, including ''Mvutu kua PSV'', a response to the Spiritual Power of the Verb of Bavua Ntinu André. He served in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

and was an unsuccessful candidate for Vice-Governor. Nsemi was accused of translating texts of the PSV without express authorization in order to teach them to his followers. During the

2006 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2006. * Elections in 2006 * Electoral calendar 2006 * 2006 Acehnese regional election * 2006 American Samoan legislative election * 2006 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2006 Costa Rican presidential e ...

, he accused President

Joseph Kabila Joseph Kabila Kabange ( , ; born 4 June 1971) is a Congolese politician and former military officer who served as the fourth President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2001 to 2019. He took office ten days after the assassination o ...

of being a "Rwandan who wants to monopolize the DRC", and his movement participated in the . Another clash broke out for several days in Kinshasa and ended on 3 March 2017 by his arrest and incarceration at

Makala Central Prison Makala Central Prison (), or Makala Prison (, ), is the biggest prison in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), located in its capital city, Kinshasa. It is located in the city center, from the presidential palace. Makala Prison is loca ...

. He escaped during a planned jailbreak with the support of militants who started a fire at the penitentiary. Nsemi disappeared after his escape and was thought to be dead, but reappeared during the administration of

Félix Tshisekedi Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo (; born 13 June 1963) is a Congolese politician who has served as the fifth president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, since 2019. He was the leader of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (Demo ...

in 2019. Initially hoping for amnesty from , he then accused Tshisekedi of marrying a Rwandan woman. He carried out another attack in March 2020 in different towns in the Kongo Central province. He was arrested the following month and admitted to a neuro-psychopathical center in Kinshasa. Some MPs pleaded with authorities in his favor, and he was released after long negotiations. He apologized to Tshisekedi and the first lady. Ne Muanda Nsemi died in Kinshasa on 18 October 2023, at the age of 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nsemi, Muanda 1946 births 2023 deaths Democratic Republic of the Congo politicians 20th-century religious leaders 21st-century religious leaders People from Kongo Central