Gabon Coup Leaders Announce New Transitional President
After the military took power following elections, the leaders of the coup in Gabon on Wednesday elected Republican Guard commander General Brice Oligui Nguema as interim president, according to a TV statement.
“General Oligui Nguema Brice was unanimously appointed chairman of the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions, chairman of the transition,” declared an officer in the presence of dozens of senior officers, according to the press release read out on Gabon 24.
Naija News House reports that President Ali Bongo, who was declared the winner of the election on Saturday, has been overthrown by the military in Gabon.
An election that the opposition said was highly contested was won by Bongo, who took office in 2009 after the passing of his father.
According to Reuters, tensions were running high amid fears of unrest after Saturday’s presidential, parliamentary, and legislative vote, which saw Bongo seeking to extend his family’s 56-year grip on power while the opposition pushed for change in the oil and cocoa-rich but poverty-stricken nation.
