A group of top Gabonese military officers on Wednesday appeared on television to announce that they had taken power over the country following President Ali Bongo’s re-election after spending 14 years in power.
His father, Omar Bongo, was in power for 42 years. The Bongo family have been in power for a total of 56 years which led to the coup and has since caused a stir online.
Reacting to the trending video, janes_sparkles said, “He banned the Internet to enable him to rig his way to power. He is using the same tool he prohibited to call for help. This is what hypocrisy looks like. Well done to the good people of Gabon. The presidency is not his birthright, how do you rule for over 50 years and still cling to power? Something is fundamentally wrong with most of our African leaders.”
Another Instagram user, I.tobiloba said, “No, we are not noisemakers. The people have been making a lot of noise for years, demanding basic necessities, but you’ve been deafeningly silent. Face your trials on your own, they’re pleased with the coup.”
#kins4real who is not in support of a coup as the solution and suggested a way out wrote, “This happened as a result of GREED.
“Firstly, I’m 100% against the military coup, and the coup is condemnable… but in a situation where only one family is ruling a country rich in crude oil for years, by painting a Monarchical System of Government in the colour of Democracy just to justify their Family Business, this is greed at its peak.
“Secondly, if the military wants to make things right and not for their own selfish, they should as a matter of urgency conduct another election for Ali Bongo and those in his cabinet to be under investigation….. I don’t support the Niger coup, but I support this one in Gabon as long as the military will do the right thing within a reasonable timeframe.”
