Military coup! Gabonese President Ali Bongo Arrested
The latest news from Gabon, "Military coup! Gabonese President Ali Bongo was arrested on Wednesday (30/8).
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| Gabon's President Ali Bongo Ondimba (Photo: Simon Maina/AFP) |
Bongo was placed under house arrest after a group of military seized power minutes after Gabon's electoral body announced his victory as a third-term president.
The Committee for Transition and Institutional Restoration declared a coup
Not only Bongo, but his son, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, and several others were also detained on a series of charges ranging from corruption to treason.
Opponents say the Bongo family is inadequate to address social inequality among its 2.3 million people using the country's oil and mining wealth.
Also, read: Niger coup leader to try ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.
A group of militaries that introduced themselves as the Transition and Institutional Recovery Committee declared a coup on Wednesday following election results that declared Bongo victorious as president for a third term.
They claimed to have staged the coup because the country was facing a "severe institutional, political, economic and social crisis."
Simultaneously, they declared that the election vote on August 26 was not credible. They also closed Gabon's borders and dissolved state institutions.
It is not known who led the coup. But television broadcasts showed a uniformed man wearing a green beret held aloft by soldiers chanting "President Oligui". This likely refers to Brice Oligui Nguema, head of Gabon's Republican Guard.
At the same time, hundreds of people also seemed to celebrate this military coup. They said they were elated by Gabon's military intervention.
"I marched today because I was excited. After almost 60 years, the Bongo family is no longer in power," said resident Jules Lebigui, 27.
Since Bongo won the 2016 election, Gabon has been plagued by unrest due to competition for power. In 2019, the country was also rocked by a failed coup attempt.
Gabon's coup would be Africa's eighth since 2020. Niger's junta launched a coup in July and held President Mohamed Bazoum under house arrest.