GABON CELEBRATES
The Bongo family has been in power for over 50 years, first the father, then the son.
However, the living standards for Gabonese people have been austere, reflecting poor governance.
While Gabon boasts significant oil resources, 40% of its people live on less than $1.90 per day, as per 2019 figures.
The Bongos' affluence, however, is a sharp contrast to the people they governed.
Omar Bongo bought French politicians with Gabon money.
By his death in 2009, he had ruled oil-rich Gabon for over four decades and amassed a fortune
that reportedly included at least 183 cars, 39 luxury properties in France, and 66 bank accounts.
In the US, Bongo's circle owns at least seven properties worth over US$4.2 million in and near Washington DC.
His daughter held $1 million in cash from her father
and confirmed that she bought luxury vehicles for Gabonese officials in the U.S. at her father's request.
As American Political Scientist, Michael Parenti, said, 'The third world is rich, only its people are poor'.
A decades-long record of the Bongo family's hold on Gabon politics
has enriched a few at the expense of the rest.
That partially explains why Gabon erupted into dance upon his ouster.
At the moment, the true interests behind the coup are unclear.
Despite decades of close support from France, French media was banned just before the coup,
allegedly for a lack of objectivity in covering the elections.
Could the coup have Paris' endorsement?
Or do these streets scenes reflect a popular movement in Gabon against years of misrule?
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