Palais de Marbre

1970–late 1970s: Construction and Mobutu's takeover

The Marble Palace was first built in 1970 after Albert Ndele Bamu, Governor of the National Bank of the Congo, commissioned its construction. The palace was first planned as his official residence on the Binza hills in Ngaliema, Kinshasa. It was designed by Eugène Palumbo and Fernand Tala N'Gai, the architects who also designed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building and the Supreme Court.^[6][7][8] The palace featured a hypermodern circular design that incorporated sections of the surrounding gardens and prominently featured marble imported from an Italian quarry, with a statue of a prodigious lion at its main entrance.^[7][9] Because of its layout, the building was said to resemble the map of the Congo.

In September 1970, Ndele was appointed Minister of Finance, a move that was widely seen as a demotion, and he was dismissed the next year.^[10][11][12] Although the National Bank (renamed the National Bank of Zaire—Banque Nationale du Zaïre—after the country's name was changed to Zaire in 1971) continued to list the palace as its property, President Mobutu Sese Seko confiscated it and converted it into one of his opulent palaces. It also became a guesthouse for important visitors,^[8] including U.S. National Security Advisor Henry Alfred Kissinger during his visit in April 1976.^[13][14]

Late-1990s–present: Mobutu's fall and post-Laurent-Désiré Kabila era

The historic official residence of the Congolese head of state was situated on Mont Ngaliema. This presidential compound, however, was heavily looted in 1997 after the collapse of the Mobutu regime during the First Congo War.^[15][16] On 17 May 1997, troops from the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (AFDL), which was composed of kadogos (child soldiers) and Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) soldiers led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila, entered Kinshasa. Mobutu fled to Morocco, where he died later that year.^[17][18][19] After taking control of the capital, the AFDL ordered residents of state-owned apartments to leave, often giving them only 1 hour to vacate. Once Mobutu was removed from power, Kabila moved into the Marble Palace.^[17][15][16]

On 16 January 2001, he was assassinated there by one of his own bodyguards.^[15][16] His son and successor, Joseph Kabila, chose not to live in the palace and instead settled in a villa known as GLM. The villa was named after Jean-Joseph Litho Moboti Nzoyombo Te Awe, Mobutu's uncle, who had received the property during the Zairianization period.^[17][20] According to Joseph Kabila's entourage, he later became the de facto owner of the property. However, legal claims surrounding GLM remain contested.^[17] The property is jointly owned and was first registered in the name of Belgian businessman William Damseaux through his company, Congo-Frigo, before part of it was sold to Litho Moboti.^[17] Legal representatives of the Moboti family argue that Joseph Kabila has no legal ownership or tenancy rights. He also took control of the "Gécamines residence", which had been intended for the Prime Minister, as well as the official residence of the President of the Legislative Council, located opposite the military officers' mess.^[17]

Nelson Mandela visited the Marble Palace on 13 February 2001 for talks with the newly sworn-in President Joseph Kabila.^[21][22] Years later, following the 2018 general elections, Félix Tshisekedi became president and officially took possession of the Palais de la Nation.^[23] Even so, the presidential villa previously occupied by Joseph Kabila remained under Kabila's control. Because of this, Tshisekedi stayed at the Kempinski Hotel on his first night as president before later relocating to the Cité de l'Union Africaine.^[23]