News: The president of the Gabonese transition expected in Brazzaville
General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, president of the Gabonese transition, is traveling this Sunday to Congo-Brazzaville where he will be received by President Denis Sassou-Nguesso in Oyo. This visit marks the officer’s second trip abroad, after his visit to neighboring Equatorial Guinea. This is an opportunity to revive the often tense relations between the two countries for more than 10 years, since the coup d’état in Gabon.
This meeting could mark a turning point in bilateral relations between Libreville and Brazzaville. Tensions between the two countries mainly have family roots, dating back to the death in 2009 of Edith-Lucie Bongo Ondimba, wife of Omar Bongo and daughter of Denis Sassou-Nguesso. Since then, the two countries have fought over his memory, which has contributed to the deterioration of relations.
The situation further worsened the same year, with a conflict over the legacy of the late Gabonese president. Additionally, the ill-gotten gains court case in France has also damaged relations. Denis Sassou-Nguesso would have suspected Pascaline Bongo, the eldest of the Bongo siblings, of having implicated her grandson, Omar-Denis Junior Bongo, also half-brother of Ali Bongo. These family complications had significant political repercussions, with some senior Gabonese officials even suspecting ODJB of having presidential ambitions and considering him a threat to Ali Bongo.
However, Omar Denis Junior Bongo reportedly maintains good relations with General Oligui Nguema, and some even consider him to be a key player in the organization of this meeting. The officer also sent several emissaries to Congo with the aim of promoting rapprochement between the two countries. He seeks to explain the motivations for the coup d’état and demonstrate his good faith, hoping to convince his neighbors to lift the sanctions weighing on Gabon, in particular its suspension from the Community of Central African States and the African Union.
This meeting between the Gabonese and Congolese presidents could therefore mark an important step in relations between the two countries, paving the way for a warming of ties and a resolution of past tensions. It also testifies to the efforts of General Oligui Nguema to restore the legitimacy of his government and position it favorably on the international scene.