The military of Gabon took power over the allegation of electoral fraud last week through a bloodless coup, leading to possible political turmoil. According to multiple sources including the BBC and CNN, the coup took place after the allegations of electoral fraud, deposing President Ali Bongo, who had been in power since 2009, and putting him under house arrest. The military immediately annulled the outcomes of the presidential election, which was won by the incumbent president but which the main opposition Alternance 2023 called fraudulent, and established the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions. Positively saying, the new military leader — Gen. Brice Oligui Nguema— has pledged to return Gabon to democracy. But it remains unclear whether the military will transfer power to an elected government sooner.
It is notable that military coup is frequent in many African countries, though it is not as frequent in Gabon as in several other countries including Burkina Faso driven by several factors including electoral fraud, corruption, mismanagement, poverty and the military’s interest in state power. In Gabon, several factors including a coup culture in Africa, where multiple coups occurred over the past several years, and political aspirations may unsurprisingly threaten the transition of power to a political government from the military takeover, which is the eighth coup in west and central Africa since 2020. According to multiple sources, the first military coup took place in 1964, just four years after Gabon gained independence from France, in which a group of military officers overthrew President Leon Mba’s government, marking the beginning of a series of military coups and attempted coups, including the 2019 coup attempt, which have periodically disrupted Gabon’s political stability over the years.
It is definitely desirable that there is an early transition of power to an elected government in Gabon, the oil-rich but poverty-stricken country. For this, the Gabonese military — which has refused to provide a timeline for fresh presidential elections but mentioned that the country’s state institutions would be made more democratic— needs to provide a time frame for the political transition in Gabon. Given that there is electoral fraud, the main driving force behind the latest military coup, re-elections are crucial for the transition of power to an elected government in the country. But a peaceful transition of power is important. Transitional efforts are also imperative for the early transition of power to the elected representatives in Gabon.
Putting international pressure and talks with the Gabonese military junta can help the early transition of power to a political government in Gabon. Though many parties including the United Nations, the African Union and France have immediately expressed concerns over the military coup, to which residents in Gabon’s capital Libreville expressed support with demonstrations, and urged to return power to the political government, their concrete steps are imperative. The role of the regional group Economic Community of West African States may also be helpful, though it remains unclear whether the efforts of it, which has imposed sanctions on various military juntas in Africa including the Niger where its steps have been ineffective.
Amir M Sayem
Chief Editor
Dhaka Opinion Magazine
