A bunch of senior army officers appeared on tv within the oil-rich Central African nation of Gabon early Wednesday and introduced they have been seizing energy, hours after the incumbent president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, was re-elected for a 3rd time period.
The officers, who claimed to symbolize the main arms of the safety forces, stated they have been canceling the election outcomes, suspending the federal government and shutting the nation’s borders till additional discover.
There was no rapid response from Mr. Bongo or the federal government. Bursts of gunfire might be heard within the capital, Libreville, shortly after the published ended, Reuters reported.
“We’ve determined to defend the peace by placing an finish to the present regime,” one of many officers stated on the Gabon 24 station.
The tried takeover adopted days of mounting tensions, with Mr. Bongo trying to prolong his household’s 56-year grip on Gabon with a presidential vote on Saturday that the opposition declared was fraudulent.
Mr. Bongo’s father, Omar Bongo, grew to become president in 1967; Mr. Bongo has been in energy since 2019. The nationwide electoral authority stated Mr. Bongo had received 65 % of the vote, whereas his foremost rival, Albert Ondo Ossa, bought 31 %.
Even earlier than the polls closed, Mr. Ondo Ossa stated the election had been rigged by Mr. Bongo’s supporters.
If the army takeover succeeds, it might be the newest in a run of coups in Western and Central Africa — a minimum of 9 prior to now three years, together with one in Niger final month.
