General Manuel Hélder Vieira Dias Jr, known by the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

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

José Eduardo dos Santos José Eduardo Van-Dúnem dos Santos (; 28 August 1942 – 8 July 2022) was an Angolan politician and military officer who served as the second president of Angola from 1979 to 2017. As president, dos Santos was also the commander-in-chief of th ...

. In 2014, his net worth was estimated at close to $3 billion. In 2021, the U.S. Treasury Department blocked his assets.

Early life and education

Manuel Hélder Vieira Dias was born on 4 October 1953 in Luanda, Angola. Kopelipa belongs to an important Angolan family with strong ties to the

MPLA The People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (, abbr. MPLA), from 1977–1990 called the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party (), is an Angolan social democratic political party. The MPLA fought against the P ...

. He is the nephew of Liceu Vieira Dias, who was a founder of the band Ngola Ritmos and the MPLA; the cousin of musician

Ruy Mingas Ruy Alberto Vieira Dias Rodrigues Mingas (12 May 1939 – 4 January 2024) was an Angolan singer, songwriter, diplomat, businessman and politician. He was a deputy in the National Assembly, secretary with the status of Minister of Sports and amba ...

, who wrote the music for

Angola Avante "" (, ) is the national anthem of Angola. Ruy Mingas composed the music, while the lyrics were authored by Manuel Rui. It was adopted as the national anthem in November 1975, when the country gained its independence from Portugal. The lyrics ma ...

, 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 who has been Archbishop of Luanda since 2015; he was an auxiliary bishop there from 2003 to 2005. He was Bishop of Cabinda from 2005 to 2014, ...

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

Career

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

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

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

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

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. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...

leaders holding top ministerial posts for the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola, the

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area'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 ruled Angola since it gained its independence from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

in 1975. In 2018, the general was 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 second vice president of Angola between September 2012 and September 2017. He was chief executive officer of Sonangol, Angola's state oil company, from 1999 to ...

and General Leopoldino “Dino” Fragoso do Nascimento. The 3 had built a secret banking network to move millions of dollars out of Angola.

Personal life

In 2014, his net worth was estimated at close to $3 billion. He embezzled billions from the Angolan government and the U.S. Treasury Department blocked his assets in 2021.

References

Living people MPLA politicians 1953 births Vieira Dias family {{Angola-politician-stub