In May 1986, the president appointed eight respected advisers to the Defense and Security Council, including the ministers of defense, interior, and state security the ministers of state for the economic and social spheres, inspection and control, and the productive sphere the FAPLA chief of the general staff and the MPLA-PT Central Committee secretary for ideology, information, and culture. The president chaired the council and gave it a broad mandate, including oversight and administration in military, economic, and diplomatic affairs. He strengthened this authority during the council's first five years by treating the council as an inner circle of close advisers. By 1988 the Defense and Security Council and the Political Bureau, both chaired by the president, were the most powerful decision-making bodies within the government and party, respectively.

Data as of February 1989