Yaounde, Aug. 30, (dpa/GNA) – Military leaders in Gabon announced they were seizing power, days after the central African nation’s presidential election which confirmed President Ali Bongo Ondimba’s third term.
The election results had been falsified, a group of officers said on state television early Wednesday.
State institutions have been dissolved with immediate effect, the election results annulled and the country’s borders closed, said the group, which called itself the Committee for Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI).
The CTRI had decided to “put an end to the current regime,” one of the officers said.
The announcement came a few hours after the electoral authority declared Bongo the winner of the election with 64.27% of the vote.
Bongo’s main challenger, Albert Ondo Ossa, received 30.77% of the vote, the authority said.
This would be Bongo’s third term. His family has ruled for more than 55 years, after he took office in 2009 from his father Omar Bongo, who had ruled from 1967 until his death.
Oil-rich Gabon has a population of around 2.3 million people, many of whom live in poverty.
The August 26 elections led to criticism as the government blocked internet access while votes were being counted over the weekend. Additionally, a curfew was imposed from 7 pm to 6 am and several French radio stations were banned from broadcasting.
The election was also marked by the absence of international observers and foreign journalists’ requests for accreditation were refused.
The coup comes less than a month after Niger’s presidential guard had deposed democratically elected president Mohamed Bazoum.
Military leaders have also seized power in Mali and Burkina Faso, triggering concerns about democracy in the region.
GNA