A group of army officers in Gabon has announced their takeover of power on national television, citing alleged electoral fraud as the reason for their intervention.
The military action comes after President Ali Bongo was declared the winner of a contested third term in office in the Central African nation.
The soldiers, numbering twelve, appeared on television to announce their decision to dissolve “all the institutions of the republic”.
They asserted that they were annulling the results of the recent election held on Saturday, which the opposition had condemned as “fraudulent”.
During their televised address on Gabon 24, one of the officers stated, “We have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the current regime.”
The soldier cited governance characterized by irresponsibility and unpredictability, which has allegedly led to the deterioration of social cohesion and posed a risk of plunging the country into chaos.
The disputed election had seen the Gabonese Election Centre (CGE) declaring Ali Bongo the winner with 64.27% of the total votes cast. The president’s main challenger, Albert Ossa, secured second place with 30.77%.
