Banyingela Kasonga facts for kids

Banyingela Kasonga (born May 4, 1959) is a priest who once ran to become the president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2006.

Who is Banyingela Kasonga?

Banyingela Kasonga was born in a place called Dimbelenge in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

He started his studies at a small seminary in Kabwe from 1974 to 1978. A seminary is a school where people study to become priests. He focused on Latin and philosophy there.

After that, he went to a bigger seminary in Kabwe. In 1981, he began studying theology at a Catholic university in Kinshasa. Theology is the study of religious faith and God.

On September 29, 1985, he became a priest in Kananga. For a few years, until 1988, he worked as a vicar in a church called Notre Dame de Kananga. A vicar is like an assistant priest.

From 1988 to 1994, he was the director of the Pius X school in Kananga. Then, in 1994, he became the director of the same small seminary where he had studied as a child.

In 1996, he went back to Kinshasa to continue his studies. He earned a special degree in Theology in 1997 and another higher degree in 1999.

From 2000 to 2006, he worked on his Ph.D. at a university in Belgium. A Ph.D. is a very high university degree.

Banyingela Kasonga's Political Work

Even when he was a young priest, Banyingela Kasonga worked to promote social justice. Social justice means making sure everyone is treated fairly in society.

For example, in 1993, he was one of the priests who spoke out against a new currency. This currency was called the Zairean zaire. Because of their efforts, the Kasai region used a different currency for a while.

Banyingela Kasonga was a strong supporter of the Alliance of Farmers and Ecologists. This group was started in 1990. In 2005, he became the vice-president of this alliance.

In 2006, his party chose him to be their candidate for the presidential elections. He ran to become the president of the country.

In the 2006 presidential elections, there were 33 candidates. Banyingela Kasonga finished 14th. He received 0.48 percent of the votes, which was about 82,000 votes across the country.