AFRICA/GABON - Ali Bongo, son of deceased President, wins elections; clashes break out between police and demonstrators

Thursday, 3 September 2009

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Libreville (Agenzia Fides) – Serious conflict has broken out between police and demonstrators in Gabon, where Ali Bongo, son of former President Omar Bongo, has been declared winner of the presidential elections with 41.73% of the vote which was held on August 30 (see Fides 31/8/2009 and 2/9/2009).
The vote count was planned to take place yesterday evening (September 2), however it was postponed until today. The former Internal Affairs Minister Andre Mbe Obame came in second, while long-time rival Pierre Mamboundou came in third. All three candidates immediately claimed victory, just hours after the closing of the polls.
Tension in the country is on the rise since the postponement of the declaration of the results, approved by the Electoral Commission due to the “misunderstandings” among its members and the delayed presentation of the records from the 2,800 polling stations throughout the country and outside its borders.
Supporters of the two main candidates running against Ali Bongo, Pierre Mamboundou and Andre Mba Obame, took to the streets of the capital city of Libreville, upon the declaration of the voting results. The national authorities for telecommunications imposed a ban on SMS messaging on telephone operators, due to the dozens of false messages being sent out to various political figures and journalists. This morning, the police sprayed tear gas on demonstrators who had declared a “sit-in” in front of the Electoral Commission's headquarters.
As the television began airing the electoral results that confirmed Bongo's victory, tensions accompanied the news. According to source from the “Agence France Presse” in Port-Gentil, an important stronghold for the opposition party, Mamboundou's supporters have attacked the prison and freed an imprecise number of prisoners. In the city streets, the demonstrators have erected barricades and burned tires. There have been outbreaks in at least two of the neighborhoods of the capital city. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 3/9/2009)