GABON: Junta chief Oligui declares intention to run for president
Gabon’s military leader General Brice Oligui Nguema, who led a 2023 coup to end 55 years of Bongo dynasty rule, announced on Monday he would run in April’s presidential elections. Oligui had pledged to hand power back to civilians after a transitional period following the ousting of president Ali Bongo Ondimba in August 2023. A […]
Gabon’s military leader General Brice Oligui Nguema, who led a 2023 coup to end 55 years of Bongo dynasty rule, announced on Monday he would run in April’s presidential elections.
Oligui had pledged to hand power back to civilians after a transitional period following the ousting of president Ali Bongo Ondimba in August 2023.
A new electoral code approved at the end of January by the transitional parliament allows members of the military and magistrates to stand for election.
“After careful reflection and in response to your many appeals, I’ve decided to be a candidate in the April 12 presidential election,” Oligui said in a speech in the capital Libreville.
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Oligui, who turned 50 years old on Monday, said his vision for the small oil-rich nation was “of a Gabon rising from the ashes”.