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LEADERS OF THE coup in Gabon have named a general transitional president after seizing power following disputed elections.
The claimed takeover sparked condemnation from the African Union and alarm from Nigeria over “contagious autocracy” in a continent where military forces have seized power in five other countries since 2020.
President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose family has ruled for 55 years, was declared the winner of the disputed election.
Bongo, 64, who took over from his father Omar in 2009, was placed under house arrest and one of his sons was arrested for treason, the coup leaders said.
TV images showed the head of the Republican Guard, General Brice Oligui Nguema, being carried triumphantly by hundreds of soldiers, to cries of “Oligui president”.
The coup leaders later named Oligui Nguema “transitional president”, according to a TV statement. He is set to be sworn in on Monday, 4 September.
The coup began with a pre-dawn address in which a group of officers declared that “all the institutions of the republic” had been dissolved, the election results cancelled and the borders closed.
“The country is going through a serious institutional, political, economic and social crisis,” according to a statement read on state TV.
It was read by an officer flanked by a dozen army colonels, members of the elite Republican Guard, regular soldiers and others.
The elections “did not meet the conditions for a transparent, credible and inclusive ballot so much hoped for by the people of Gabon”, the statement said.
“Added to this is irresponsible and unpredictable governance, resulting in a continuing deterioration in social cohesion, with the risk of leading the country in chaos.
“We — the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI) on behalf of the people of Gabon and as guarantors of the institutions’ protection — have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the current regime,” it said.
The African Union’s Peace and Security Council said it was holding a meeting Thursday on the situation in Gabon, following the military coup there this week.
“Now – AU Peace & Security Council meets to consider the situation in Gabon,” the AU body said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The body’s Chairperson, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, has already condemned the coup, saying that it constitutes “a flagrant violation of the legal and political instruments of the African Union”.
Bongo’s son and close adviser Noureddin Bongo Valentin, his chief of staff Ian Ghislain Ngoulou, his deputy, two other presidential advisers and the two top officials in the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) “have been arrested”, a military leader said.
They are accused of treason, embezzlement, corruption and falsifying the president’s signature, among other allegations, he said.
A worried-looking Bongo, in a video from an unidentified location, appealed to “all friends that we have all over the world… to make noise” on his behalf.
“My son is somewhere, my wife is in another place and I’m at the residence and nothing is happening. I don’t know what’s going on. I’m calling you to make noise.”
On the streets of the capital, and the economic hub Port-Gentil, groups of joyous people were seen celebrating.
In Libreville, around 100 people shouted “Bongo out!” and applauded police in anti-riot gear, an AFP staff member saw.
Bongo was first elected in 2009 following the death of his father Omar, who had ruled the country for 41 years, reputedly amassing a fortune.
The coup announcement came just moments after the national election authority declared Bongo had won a third term in Saturday’s election with 64.27 percent of the vote.
Gabon’s main opposition, led by university professor Albert Ondo Ossa, had accused Bongo of “fraud”, and demanded that he hand over power “without bloodshed”.
Authorities at the weekend imposed a curfew, which on Wednesday was extended until further notice, and shut down the internet nationwide. The internet was restored on Wednesday morning after the TV address.
Several French media outlets, whose output was suspended during the tumultuous period following the election, were permitted to resume, according to a statement from the coup leadership broadcast Wednesday.
Gabon’s 2016 elections were marked by deadly violence after Bongo edged out rival Jean Ping by just 5,500 votes, according to the official tally.
In 2018, Bongo suffered a stroke that sidelined him for 10 months and fuelled accusations he was medically unfit to hold office.
The central African country of 2.3 million people has been ruled by the Bongos for more than 55 of the 63 years since independence from France in 1960.
International reaction to the coup has been swift: the United Nations on Wednesday firmly condemned the coup, calling on the military to guarantee the safety of Bongo and his family.
The US State Department late Wednesday said it was “deeply concerned” and remained “strongly opposed to military seizures” while voicing concerns over the “lack of transparency and reports of irregularities surrounding the election”.
Last week’s election was held without international observers and Paris-based media rights campaigners Reporters Without Borders denounced the fact that foreign journalists had been largely restricted from covering the event.
The African Union said it “strongly condemns” the claimed takeover as a violation of its charter, while Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said he was in contact with African leaders over the “contagious autocracy we have seen spread across our continent”.
Since 2020, there have been military takeovers in Mali, Guinea, Sudan, Burkina Faso and Niger.
Russia also said it was “deeply concerned”, while China called for “all sides” in Gabon to guarantee Bongo’s safety.
In France, where Bongo’s loss would mark a blow to Paris’ reach in Africa, the government said it “condemns the coup”, reiterating its desire “to see the results of the election respected, once they are known”.
Germany and Britain on Wednesday both condemned the takeover, with Berlin saying there were “legitimate” concerns over the elections.
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Pumps go up in 5…4…3…2….1… and they won’t be coming down that’s for sure
@kevinhunt101: that’s very true. beef prices up too
@kevinhunt101:
Fuel prices increase…VAT increases both on retail and pump purchace.
The garage still only makes between 10 -15 cent p/l
@kevinhunt101: This in a nut shell is why we should be going electric…..no more dependence of spikes with petrol prices
@Peter Hughes: since we are already buying 20% of our electricity from europe how do you not see it rising?… with every venture being objected I dont see how we get to a point where we are sufficient. Wind farms are being objected because of the “not in my back garden” group. Fossil fuels plants are being closed due to polution but not being replaced. Ardnacrusha hydro plant floods the shannon yearly. Solar is not that viable in whole sale for us. nuclear albeit is the most logical, but is the one most feared even though our imported electricity comed from England and France’s nuclear sites
We don’t have the capacity in this country if everyone was to go electric.
I smell a right conspiracy.
@John Quill: no one mentioned weapons of mass destruction yet. Troops getting ready, planes on way and drones. Yeah yanks need a war all right!
I’m starting to believe that the next world defining moment will start in that region, Syria, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Israel, all those countries have very close ties to either the US, EU, Russia or China. We like to think cool heads in modern society will stop any chance of human fatalities ever reaching into the millions again in global conflicts, but human history paints a different picture. Surely I’m wrong,, we as a species couldn’t be that stupid to allow our leaders take humanity into another global conflict, could we? But then when you look at who is running some of the worlds most powerful countries maybe it is possible,, scary thought….
@Devilsavocado: I think you answered your own question. The greed of the richest 1% will be the downfall of man.
@Peter Cavey: just to point out, the income level of the top 1% world wide is like 32,000 dollars…. So the average earner in Ireland is a member of the top 1% in the world. The richest 1% are absolutely responsible for the bulk of the world’s problems, but we don’t often see the fallout from our own actions.
@Ciarán Ó Fallúin: okay, the top 0.1%, you know what I mean.
Someone’s about to get Freedom just as we head to an election.
Elections coming up. No US President fails to get relected if they are a war president.
Unfortunetly Millions of Iranians will pay the price.
@Niallers: yep, American citizens will vote for war every time. The only way I see this changing is if war visits their own shores to show them what they’re actually voting for. Nah they still wouldn’t change.
@Niallers: Trump’s base are anti-war. He may as well pull out of the election if he goes to war. He’s well aware of it too. How many times have you seen this now since the beginning of 2017? If you have been paying attention then you’ll have noticed a pretty clear pattern emerge. I wouldn’t get too excited about the prospect of war if I were you.
@Burn_the_Witch: I hope you are right.
Thanks CIA.
Has that man ever spoken the truth. His fascism trial is rolling along nicely.
@Paul Furey: Fascism Trial?
@Paul Furey: Give your head a whack Paul, the tape is stuck.
Its the attacks mixed with complete uncertainty of how Trump will respond that drives up prices. The reaction wouldn’t be so “knee jerk” under another president.
@Dan: Nothing uncertain about it – there’ll be no reaction at all. The only thing Trump has actually done is engage in a trade war with China, even then he hasn’t actually imposed half of the tariffs he’s mentioned.
Higher oil prices make it more profitable to extract shale oil in the US so he has a vested interest in allowing the prices to rise (to a point). He’ll mouth off and do nothing as has been his modus operandi since getting elected.
@Dan: Sorry Dan but you’re a d0pe. He’s a non interventionist. He has proved that over and over again. Is it lack of awareness of what’s happening in the world or perhaps TDS that makes you say such things? Id love to know.
Saudi’s suffering from low fuel prices , this be a good way of getting a boost in money terms. There are low Frequency blockers this drones use to prevent this .
Saudis, Emiratis and Qataris buying billions in arms to expend in stone age Yemen at little or no risk of retaliation … until now. According to the UN there are 10K direct casualities in Yemen and at least 40K wounded with up to 10 Million civilians at risk from famine, disease and civil rights abuses. Trump’s response is ‘lock and load’ rhetoric to escalate the situation because stock markets don’t like retaliation!!!
Time for some freedom to be delivered to Iran, who will somehow get the blame for this with the Saudi’s and Israel pulling Trump and the US puppet strings….
@Michael Patrick Newell: I think the US will quickly come to the realisation that fighting Persians in Iran is a different proposition to Arabs in Iraq. On a tactical level Iran should be no match but what to do after is a question the US has failed or refused to answer since the end of the Second World War.
What will an increase in price for gas at the pumps do for Trumps re-election chances?
@Gavin Tobin: Perhaps that’s why Bolton’s friends did it.
Peace full Trump ,a yes
Release strategic reserve….. We’ll be grand by tomorrow…..
Is it just me or is someone getting carried away a wee bit ?
There goes the element of surprise
have your say