Mr Bongo, who won a controversial re-election over the weekend, was removed in a coup on Wednesday and has been detained by soldiers who have announced a transition leader.
In a video seen by PREMIUM TIMES on the social networking platform X, Mr Bongo was seen sitting in a room filled with books. “…the people here have arrested me and my family. My son is somewhere and my wife is in another place,” he said.
He said he was being held at his residence and did not know what was going on. The soldiers announced that Mr Bongo was placed under house arrest.
Few hours later, General Brice Nguema, leader of Gabon’s Republican Guard, was named transition leader. He was in charge of the president’s security.
A spokesperson for the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI) said that Mr Nguema had been “unanimously” designated as “president of the transition.”
Mr Nguema is believed to be related to the ousted president. He is one of the most influential figures in the country. His father was also a military officer.
Mr Nguema joined the military from a young age and trained at the Royal Military Academy of Meknes, in Morocco. His military skills were noticed by members of Gabon’s former President Omar Bongo’s Republican Guard.
He served as the senior Bongo’s “aide-de-camp” or military assistant until Ali Bongo rose to power in October 2009 when Mr Bongo was sent to Morocco and Senegal for diplomatic missions, but returned to Gabon in 2018. A year later, he took over as the head of the guard.
Senior soldiers in Gabon on Wednesday morning announced they had taken over the government following Saturday’s elections which were judged not to be credible.
The elections saw Mr Bongo, Gabon’s president of over 18 years, emerge winner and he was ready to assume a third term in office. The Bongos have held that position since 1967 when the senior Bongo was president and upon his demise in 2009, his son took over.
“In the name of the Gabonese people … we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime,” the soldiers said as they took over power.
Many Gabonese, as seen in several videos shared on social media, appear to be in support of the coup or the ousting of the president.
Mr Bongo had shut down the internet on Saturday after the elections but on taking over, the soldiers undid that action. They, however, said there would be a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. but people would be allowed to move about freely during the day on Thursday.
Credit: Premium Times
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