Tinubu reacts to coup in Gabon, condemns action

President Bola Tinubu has reacted to the latest coup in Gabon, where President Ali Bongo has been outsted and placed under house arrest.

Recall that some military personnel had hinged their plot to seize power from Bongo on what they termed as observed flaws in the recent general election in the central African country.

The officers had also admitted that the organisation of the general elections of August 26, 2023, did not meet the conditions for a transparent, credible and inclusive ballot so much hoped for by the people of Gabon.

They had also cited irresponsible and unpredictable governance, resulting in a continuing deterioration in social cohesion, with the risk of leading the country into chaos.

But reacting on behalf of President Tinubu on Wednesday, his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale said the presidency is watching closely with deep concern “the seeming autocratic contention apparently spreading across different regions of our beloved continent.”

Ngelale said the President as a man who has made significant personal sacrifices in his own life in the course of advancing and defending democracy is of the unwavering belief that power belongs in the hands of Africa’s great people and not in the barrel of a loaded gun.

He said the President “affirms that the rule of law and a faithful recourse to the constitutional resolutions and instruments of electoral dispute resolution must not at any time be allowed to perish from our great continent.

“To this end, the President is working very closely and continues to communicate with other Heads of States in the African Union towards a comprehensive consensus on the next steps forwards with respect to how the power in Gabon will play out and how the continent will respond to contagious autocracy we have seen spread across our continent.”