2023-08-30 09:03:34
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“It’s worrying for democracy” and it also raises the question of France’s influence in Africa, said Seidik Abba, president of the International Center for Reflection and Studies on the Sahel.
Published on 08/30/2023 09:03
Reading time: 2 min.
In Gabon, soldiers declare “to put an end to the regime” and to cancel the elections, on August 30, 2023. (- / GABON 24 / VIA AFP)
“The classic ingredients of a coup d’etat are united” in Gabon, explains Wednesday August 30 on franceinfo Seidik Abba, president of the International Center for Reflection and Studies on the Sahel. In the morning, a group of a dozen Gabonese soldiers and police announced that “end to the regime in place”while the official results of the presidential election had just confirmed the victory of President Ali Bongo, in power for 14 years. “The military took control of the presidential palace, they decreed the closure of land and air borders and they dissolved the institutions”, recalls Seidik Abba.
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For Seidik Abba, “Ali Bongo may have served too many terms. He had been reduced by a cardiovascular accident for several years, many did not think he was capable of leading a presidential campaign”, he adds. This specialist also considers that the restrictions put in place by the government following the presidential election have “added tension” within the country, especially with “internet suspension and curfew”. “The opposition already suspected the authorities of wanting to reverse the result of the presidential election”insists the president of the International Center for Reflection and Studies on the Sahel.
An “unpopular” regime
Seidik Abba considers that there is still “see how [les militaires] are going to take control of the other levers of power and if there is resistance from a handful of loyalists”. For the time being he assures not to see “many Gabonese take to the streets to defend this regime” that he judges “unpopular”.
This putsch attempt comes after the coups in Mali, Burkina Faso or Niger. “There is a worrying contagion”, fears Seidik Abba. The president of the International Center for Reflection and Studies on the Sahel denounces “a kind of steamroller on the part of the military powers”. He also considers that “it’s worrying for democracy” but that this also raises the question of the influence of France in Africa since these putsches occur “in former French colonies”. “Gabon was an economic ally with oil” and if the country “rocking, it’s a new setback for France and its influence in Africa”, says Seidik Abba. He also recalls that he “there is a permanent presence of nearly 350 French soldiers in Gabon”.
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