Gabon's President Ali Bongo looks on during the One Forest Summit at the Presidential Palace in Libreville on March 2, 2023. (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP)
Army officers in Gabon have gone on national television to declare that they had taken power.
They proclaimed the results of Saturday’s election, in which President Ali Bongo was declared the winner, null and void.
According to the electoral commission, Mr Bongo received slightly under two-thirds of the vote in an election that the opposition claimed was rigged.
Ali Bongo’s overthrow would end his family’s 53-year reign in Gabon.
On Wednesday, twelve soldiers appeared on television, declaring that the election results would be annulled and “all the institutions of the republic” would be dissolved.
They also stated that the country’s borders were blocked “until further notice.”
On Gabon 24 TV, one of the soldiers stated, “We have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the current regime.”
He attributed this to “irresponsible, unpredictable governance,” which has resulted in a “continuing deterioration in social cohesion that risks leading the country into chaos.”
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