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A constitutional referendum was held in Zaire on 24 June 1973. The new constitution made the ruling Popular Movement of the Revolution (MPR) the supreme organisation in the country, with the government renamed the Executive Council of the MPR, and parliament becoming the National Legislative Council of the MPR. [1] It also changed the election process from the standard balloting, to election by "acclaim", whereby candidates were presented to the public and were elected by being cheered. [1]
Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of a sovereign state between 1971 and 1997 in Central Africa that is now known as Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country was a one-party totalitarian dictatorship, run by Mobutu Sese Seko and his ruling Popular Movement of the Revolution party. Zaire was established following Mobutu's seizure of power in a military coup in 1965, following five years of political upheaval following independence known as the Congo Crisis. Zaire had a strongly centralist constitution, and foreign assets were nationalised. The period is sometimes referred to as the Second Congolese Republic.
The Popular Movement of the Revolution was the ruling political party in Zaire which, for most of its existence, was the sole permitted faction in Zaire's one-party state. Founded by Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, the MPR was established on 20 May 1967.
Although over 10 million people had voted in the presidential election in 1970, there were fewer than 700,000 registered voters for the referendum. [2] The amended constitution was passed with 77.66% in favour.
