I Am Deeply Concerned About Gabon Coup – Tinubu

Nigeria’s President cum ECOWAS Chairman, Bola Tinubu has expressed concern over the military coup in Gabon earlier on Wednesday.

President Ali Bongo of Gabon was forced out of power and detained by the country’s military on Wednesday morning.

The ousted president, who has been in power since 2019, was declared the winner of last Saturday’s presidential election, having fulfilled a two-thirds victory at the polls.

With the latest coup, Gabon is now the latest country in Africa to suffer a coup, just a few weeks after mutinous troops seized power in Niger.

Tinubu’s Spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, while briefing State House Correspondent in Abuja on Wednesday, said his principal would consult with other Heads of State and Government in the African Union on the Gabon crisis to determine the way forward for the natural resource-rich country.

‘’President Bola Tinubu is watching closely with deep concern for the country’s social-political stability and at the seeming autocratic contention apparently spreading across different regions of our beloved continent.

‘’The president, as a man who has made significant sacrifices in his life in the course of advancing and defending democracy, is of the belief that power belongs in the hands of Africa’s great people and not in the barrel of a loaded gun,’’ he said.

Gabon is rich in natural resources such as timber, manganese, and oil and it’s the fifth-largest oil-producing nation in Africa, which has helped drive its strong growth.

The country’s oil sector now accounts for 50 per cent of its GDP and 80 per cent of its exports.

Ngelale said the president affirmed that the rule of law and recourse to the constitutional resolutions and instruments of electoral dispute needed to be used in the matters of democratic challenges.

“To this end, the president is working very closely and continues to communicate with other Heads of State in the African Union.

‘’This is towards a comprehensive consensus on the next steps forward with respect to how the power in Gabon will play out and how the continent will respond to contagious autocracy spreading across the continent,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kanyi Daily reported that Ex Nigerian Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode has predicted more military takeovers in French-speaking West and Central African countries in the near future.

Fani-Kayode stated this in his reaction to the military coup in Gabon where President Ali Bongo, who has been in power since 2019 was ousted on Wednesday.