The presidency of Angola announced Friday that Ali Bongo Ondimba, the former leader of Gabon who was arrested following his overthrow in a coup in 2023, had been freed and had come in Luanda with his family.
After being deposed in August 2023, Bongo, whose family had controlled Gabon for 55 years, had been placed under house imprisonment in Libreville, the country’s capital.
Due to allegations of embezzlement of public funds, his wife and son had also been detained.
Photos of the former leader being greeted at an airport were posted alongside a statement on the Angolan presidency’s Facebook page announcing the Bongo family’s arrival in Luanda.
It stated that the Bongo family had recently arrived in Luanda after being released.
Without providing specifics, the statement stated that the family’s release came after discussions between Gabon’s new leader, Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, and Angola President Joao Lourenco.
The Bongo dynasty’s 55-year dominance came to an end in August 2023 when Oligui, a former junta leader, took over the oil-rich nation.
In an April 12 poll that showed no significant anomalies, the general received 94.85% of the vote and was sworn in earlier this month.
Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze, Bongo’s former prime minister and Oligui’s principal opponent, claimed that the family’s release proved that their imprisonment “did not respect the framework of law and justice.”
He remarked, “President Oligui Nguema did not exhibit clemency: following what everyone recognized as an abuse of power, he had to yield to international demands.”
Attorneys for Bongo’s 62-year-old French-born wife Sylvia and 33-year-old son Noureddin said they were tortured while in custody.
They were recently transferred from cells in a presidential annex to a family home in Libreville, according to many Gabonese media outlets.
Member of the transitional parliament, Geoffroy Foumboula Libeka, said the move of the family “in the middle of the night and in total silence” was “a real disgrace for the first days” of the new government.
“Where is Gabon’s sovereignty?” he asked on social media, charging the Bongo family’s release was “the price to pay” for Gabon’s reintegration into the African Union, which is currently headed by Lourenco.
The African Union announced on April 30 that it had lifted sanctions against Gabon, which was suspended from the organisation following the coup.
The country of 2.3 million people has endured high unemployment, regular power and water shortages, and heavy government debt despite its oil wealth.
The Gabon presidency announced on social media on May 12 that Lourenco had met Oligui in Libreville for talks focused “on strengthening bilateral cooperation, the smooth running of democratic elections marking the end of the transition in Gabon”.
They also discussed the lifting of sanctions following Gabon’s reintegration into the AU.
The 66-year-old Bongo, who is suspected to be in poor health, came to power in 2009, taking over from his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who ruled for 41 years.
After a campaign filled with violent altercations and accusations of fraud, he narrowly defeated opposition candidate Jean Ping to win reelection for a second term in 2016 by a few thousand votes.
While visiting Saudi Arabia in October 2018, he suffered a stroke, raising concerns about his health and ability to lead when he returned home.
He rarely appeared in public, and even fewer occasions occurred when he gave a live speech outside the presidential residence.
Bongo ruled for 14 years before being deposed shortly after winning a presidential election that the opposition and army deemed to be rigged.
About The Author
