Gabon: Brice Clotaire Oligui, new military leader
The head of the Republican Guards, Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, was selected by his peers to lead the transition in Gabon after they took over power on Wednesday, August 30, 2023.
Early Wednesday, the military announced that they had taken over power from Ali Bongo Ondimba, citing a degraded social atmosphere that according to them can lead to chaos in the future.
They also said the August 26, presidential elections were fraudulently carried out.
The country’s electoral commission, announced at midnight on Tuesday that incumbent, Ali Bongo won 64.27% with Ondo Ossa, having 30%.
His position as the leader of the Republican Guards was to protect the president.
The coup on Wednesday shows that the Gabonese military had enough of the irregularities ongoing in the country.
In April 2020, Colonel Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema took over the head of the Republican Guard, an elite army corps responsible for protecting the head of state, replacing General Grégoire Kouna, also cousin of Ali Bongo Ondimba. Maybe Bongo’s mistake was replacing his cousin with someone who would one day oust him from power.
