THE main rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Rally for Congolese Democracy, has chosen Dr Emile Ilunga as its new chairman, replacing Professor Ernest Wamba dia Wamba who was ousted on Sunday night. Both the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Voice of America reported yesterday that Dr Ilunga, a medical doctor from the Katanga region, was elected on Wednesday evening by a group calling itself “the founders of the rebellion”. Professor Wamba dia Wamba, who moved to Kisangani at the height of divisions within the rebel ranks, rushed to Goma to forestall Dr Ilunga’s installation, without success. RCD vice chairman, Bizima Karaha, and military commander John Pierre Ondekane said Professor Wamba dia Wamba had failed as a leader by moving to Kisangani. Dr Ilunga, neither a Tutsi nor a former Mobutuist, led the rebel delegation which came to Lusaka, Zambia, for the recent failed talks.