In Gabon, General Brice Oligui Nguema was named “President of the Transition” by the putschists. Overthrown by the coup, Ali Bongo was placed under house arrest, putschists announced on television on August 30, 2023. One of the sons of the outgoing head of state, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, was also arrested.
2 mins
The press release was read on Gabon 24 television. General Oligui Nguema Brice was unanimously appointed chairman of the Committee for the Transition and the Restoration of Institutions, chairman of the transition “, said an officer in the presence of dozens of senior officers and generals, who represent all the corps of the Gabonese army.
General Brice Oligui Nguema was, before the coup, the commander-in-chief of the Republican Guard, the elite unit of the Gabonese army. Son of an officer, trained at the Royal Military Academy of Meknes in Morocco, he was even one of the aides-de-camp of Omar Bongo, the former president and father of the current head of state, and this, until his disappearance in June 2009.
The duration of the transition of the military to power has not been specified. The putschists maintain the curfew “ until further notice “. This curfew was introduced four days ago by the power of the deposed president ” to keep calm “. ” As of tomorrow, Gabonese will again be able to freely go about their business between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. The traffic restriction remains in effect from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. until further notice said a senior officer. The curfew is therefore extended by one hour.
They also announced the restoration of the broadcast of the suspended media on Saturday evening, the day of the presidential election. This ” provisional broadcast ban aimed exclusively at French-speaking media: France 24, RFI and TV5 Monde. General Oligui Nguema orders the reconnection of the optical fiber and the restoration of international television radio channels “.
Ali Bongo” kept under house arrest »
A little earlier in the day, the soldiers indicated in a press release read on state television by members of the self-proclaimed Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI), that President Ali Bongo ” is kept under house arrest. He is surrounded by his family and his doctors “. They claimed that several arrests had also taken place in Ali Bongo’s entourage, in particular that of his son Noureddin Valentin.
Gabon was plunged into uncertainty on August 30, 2023. The president of the Gabonese Election Center (CGE) announced on television the victory of President Ali Bongo with 64.27% of the vote. Then, a few minutes later, a group of soldiers appeared on Gabon 24 – whose studios are located in the presidency – to announce the end of the regime in place, the cancellation of the elections and the dissolution of the institutions of the Republic.
(More information to come…)