General Manuel Hélder Vieira Dias Jr, known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

"Kopelipa", is an Angolan general, former public official, and businessman with close ties to former Angolan President

José Eduardo dos Santos José Eduardo dos Santos (; 28 August 1942 – 8 July 2022) was the president of Angola from 1979 to 2017. As president, dos Santos was also the commander-in-chief of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and president of the People's Movement for ...

. In 2014, his net worth was estimated at close to $3 billion.

Family Background

Kopelipa belongs to an important Angolan family with strong ties to the

MPLA The People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola ( pt, Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola, abbr. MPLA), for some years called the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party (), is an Angolan left-wing, social d ...

. He is the nephew of Carlos Aniceto Vieira Dias, known as “Liceu,” who was a founder of the band

Ngola Ritmos Ngola Ritmos was a musical group created in 1947 in the home of Manuel dos Passos by a group of young men called Domingos Van-Dúnem, Mário da Silva Araújo, Francisco Machado, Liceu Vieira Días and Nino Ndongo who formerly comprised a group nam ...

and the MPLA; the cousin of musician Ruy Alberto Vieira Dias Mingas, who wrote the music for Angola Avante, Angola's national anthem; the cousin once removed of

Filomeno do Nascimento Vieira Dias Filomeno do Nascimento Vieira Dias (born 18 April 1958) is an Angolan prelate of the Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Ch ...

, the Archbishop of Luanda; and the cousin of opposition politician Filomeno Vieira Lopes.

Public Role

Kopelipa is the former director of the National Reconstruction Office, a top governmental position in

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

.
Republic of Angola Permanent Mission to the United Nations, December 2005 Newsletter
Angola After the Wars by Augusta Conchiglia (11 Jun 2008) He is — along with fellow "top

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

s" Higino Carneiro, João Maria de Sousa, Roberto Leal Monteiro, and

Kundi Paihama Kundi Paihama (9 December 1944 – 24 July 2020) was an Angolan politician who served as Angola's Minister of Defense from 2002 to 2010. He served subsequently as Minister for War Veterans. Paihama was the 18th candidate on the national list of ...

— one of the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

leaders holding top ministerial posts for the

People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola The People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola ( pt, Movimento Popular de Libertação de Angola, abbr. MPLA), for some years called the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party (), is an Angolan left-wing, social de ...

, the

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

that has ruled Angola since it gained its independence from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

in 1975. The general has been referred to as "the highest and most trusted member of the president’s entourage" and was a member of the trio of officials known as Dos Santos’s "Presidential Triumvirate,” along with

Manuel Vicente Manuel Domingos Vicente (born 15 May 1956) is an Angolan politician who served as the vice president of Angola between September 2012 and September 2017. Previously he was chief executive officer of Sonangol, Angola's state oil company, from 19 ...

and General Leopoldino “Dino” Fragoso do Nascimento.

References

Living people MPLA politicians 1953 births {{Angola-politician-stub