COMMONWEALTH EXPRESSES DEEP CONCERN OVER MILITARY COUP IN GABON
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On Wednesday, the Commonwealth voiced its profound concern about the military coup in Gabon.
In the early hours of Wednesday, a group of top Gabonese military commanders emerged on national television and claimed to have assumed power after the state electoral board declared President Ali Bongo had won a third term.
Just a few weeks after members of the presidential guard in Niger seized control and installed a junta, there are hints of a coup in Gabon.
Patricia Scotland, the secretary-general of the Commonwealth, expressed concerns over the military takeover in Gabon, which joined the alliance last year, and added that the organisation was constantly following the situation.
Scotland said “the situation is deeply concerning”.
“The Commonwealth Charter is clear that member states must uphold the rule of law and the principles of democracy at all times.”
Elisabeth Borne, the French prime minister, had earlier stated that France was paying “the greatest attention” to what was happening in Gabon.
On Monday, President Emmanuel Macron condemned the “epidemic” of coups that have occurred in French-speaking Africa in recent years, including those in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, and most recently, Niger.
According to the website of the French Ministry of the Armed Forces, Paris keeps a military presence in many of its former colonial possessions. This includes Gabon, where it has 370 soldiers stationed permanently, some of whom are in the capital, Libreville.
Additionally, Russia has voiced worry over the circumstances in Gabon.
The Spokesperson, Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Russia, Maria Zakharova, said “Moscow has received with concern reports of a sharp deterioration in the internal situation in the friendly African country. We continue to closely monitor the development of the situation and hope for its speedy stabilisation.”
Speaking to the French newspaper Le Monde, coup leader, Brice Nguema, said the president would “enjoy all his rights” after the military announced it has placed him under house arrest.
“He is a Gabonese head of state. He is retired. He enjoys all his rights. He is a normal Gabonese, like everyone else,” Nguema said.
Nguema will not confirm whether he will declare himself the new president of the West African country.
“I do not declare myself yet. I do not envisage anything for the moment,” he said.
“This is a debate that we are going to have with all the generals. We will meet at 2pm [13:00 GMT]. It will be about reaching a consensus. Everyone will put forward ideas, and the best ones will be chosen as well as the name of the person who will lead the transition,” he added.
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