Election Results Cancelled; the Regime is Over; the Military Takes Control of the Country in Gabon

On television on Wednesday, a group of military officials from Gabon said they were “putting an end to the current regime” and annulling the official election results that had given President Ali Bongo Ondimba a second term.

The announcement was being made when shooting could be heard in Libreville, the capital of Gabon.

One of the officials said that “all the institutions of the republic” had been dissolved while cancelling the results of the referendum.

An officer read the speech while being accompanied by several dozen army colonels, special Republican Guard troops, ordinary soldiers, and others.

It happened just after the national election administration announced that Bongo, 64, had received 64.27 percent of the vote and won a third term on Saturday.

14 years have passed since Bongo came to power in the oil-rich nation of West Africa. After the passing of his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who had controlled the nation for 41 years, he was first elected in 2009.

The news was made as voting on Saturday came to an end, in the midst of a statewide internet blackout and a nighttime curfew enforced by Bongo’s administration.

An AFP correspondent saw that the streets of downtown Libreville were barren around 06:00 GMT.

The officer said on TV station Gabon 24 that “the country is currently experiencing a serious institutional, political, economic, and social crisis.”

The latest election, according to him, “did not meet the conditions for a transparent, credible, and inclusive ballot so much hoped for by the people of Gabon.”

The officer continued, adding that he was speaking on behalf of the “Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions,” “We have decided to defend peace by ending the current regime.”

Public television station Gabon 1 also aired the remarks.

In order to do this, he said, “the general elections of August 26, 2023, and the truncated results are cancelled.”

“FRAUD” ACCUSED

He continued by declaring that “until further notice,” the nation’s borders would be closed and that “all the institutions of the republic are dissolved: the government, the Senate, the National Assembly, and the Constitutional Court.”

14 candidates competed for the top position in the oil-rich state in central Africa, but Bongo and Ondo Ossa took the lead.

Without election monitors present, Gabon’s presidential, parliamentary, and municipal elections took place as scheduled.

According to the data released before the officers made their decision, Albert Ondo Ossa, Bongo’s major opponent, received just 30.77 percent of the vote.

Ondo Ossa claimed he was the legitimate winner and called Bongo’s victory a “fraud” before the polls closed on Saturday.

In order to stop the transmission of “false news” and potential violence, Bongo’s administration said that the internet will be shut down for the foreseeable future and that a nighttime curfew between the hours of 7:00 pm and 6:00 am would begin on Sunday.

The French broadcasters France 24, Radio France International (RFI), and TV5Monde were also temporarily taken off the air by the country’s broadcasting regulator, the HAC, after they were accused of “a lack of objectivity and balance” in their election coverage.

Ondo Ossa’s campaign manager Mike Jocktane urged Bongo to cede power “without bloodshed” on Monday, claiming that a partial count showed Ondo Ossa well ahead but offering no supporting evidence.

In anticipation of the final results, which only the Gabonese Elections Centre, the organization that oversees the elections, is legally permitted to announce, Gabonese law prohibits the release of any preliminary results.