Douglas Yates
The recent military intervention that put an end to the Bongo family’s 56-year hold on power in Gabon has been many years in the making.
Its roots can be traced back to when deposed president Ali Bongo Ondimba suffered a stroke in 2018.
The political crisis caused by Bongo’s illness and the opaque manner in which he continued to hold the reins of power through close family members during his convalescence created tensions within the power circles.
On one side were critics who demanded his resignation and sought to end the Bongo dynasty’s grip on power in the oil rich Central African country. These critics were mostly responsible for the emergence of Albert Ondo Ossa as a consensus opposition presidential candidate at the 2023 elections.
On the other side were loyal members of the ruling Parti Démocratique Gabonais. The party was founded by former president Omar Bongo, who
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