General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema will be sworn in as the transitional President of Gabon on September 4th. This was reported by Agence France Presse (AFP), citing a military statement.
According to the source, the general will take the oath of office as the transitional president on Monday, September 4th, before the Constitutional Court.
A Lesser Evil Former Gabonese Prime Minister Raymond Ndong Sima described the events of August 30th in Gabon as a “bloodless coup” and a “lesser evil” in the existing situation.
“We can only be satisfied that yesterday, the military intervened in the electoral process and disrupted it, and this happened without bloodshed. In the current situation, this may be the lesser evil. In democratic regimes, we can hope for political changes through elections when the focus is on impartial institutions with transparent rules.”
“Elections must have a strong legal basis that offers everyone equal chances of success. However, in recent years, things have not gone this way in our country,” he stated on social media.
According to Raymond Ndong Sima, the transitional period in Gabon should have a determined timeline and lead to the adoption of a new Constitution and new elections. The military should “fit into the country’s political landscape in order to create a new electoral process befitting a democratic system and promise not to participate in elections personally.”
On August 30th, a group of senior Gabonese military officials announced on national television that they had taken power. The coup plotters nullified the results of the August 26th elections, won by Ali Bongo Ondimba, a candidate for a third term. The army declared that the president was “held in monitored residence, surrounded by his family and doctors.” Subsequently, General Brice Oligui Nguema was designated as the leader of the transition by the military.
