Yaoundé, Sept. 8, (dpa/GNA) – Gabon’s new military ruler Brice Oligui Nguema has appointed a prime minister, three days after being sworn in as interim president following a coup.
The premier’s post will be held by Raymond Ndong Sima, a critic of Ali Bongo Ondimba, who was ousted as president in the military putsch.
The appointment emerged on Thursday from a decree read on state television.
The Paris-educated economist was part of Bongo’s government from 2012 to 2014. However, he resigned over disagreements with the president and joined the opposition.
Over the weekend, Nguema, previously head of the presidential guard, had promised to lead the central African country toward greater democracy after the coup.
Shortly before the putsch, Bongo had been re-elected for a third term, according to official results. However, there are considerable doubts as to whether the election was free and fair.
The Bongo family, which has ruled autocratically for more than 50 years, has long been accused of corruption. Gabon’s population of about 2.3 million lives largely in poverty despite the country’s oil wealth.
The coup had been celebrated by many Gabonese as a “liberation” from a kleptocracy but west African neighbours have decried the move.
Further north of Gabon, the recent coup in Niger caused considerable unrest in the Sahel region, with the country having been a key partner to Europe, in particular France, in the fight against Islamist militants.
GNA