Congo: President Mobutu s Birthplace of Gbadolite – BBC News

Visit the former president of Mobutu Sese S Forestry, a country he named Zaire for 32 years.

His daughter Fyfy shows us round. He remembers a Picasso painting that hung on the wall.

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In 1965, after a bloody coup, Mobutu took over the presidency and became a textbook dictator, dividing and persecuting rivals, and enriching the country through nepotism and corruption, which he named Zaire.

In his remote hometown of Gbadolite, he built a stately palace and airport for luxury flying like pink champagne. The track was long enough for the Concorde to land – it provided some sort of ship.

But when he was ousted in 1997, time stopped in the remote village. The jungle has restored its palace. To find out more:

Documentary World News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/n3ct5fyt

World Service Podcast: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06v…

VR Hub: https://www.bbc.co.uk/virtualreality .

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