Gabon: inauguration speech by the president of the transition

Brigadier General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema President of the Transition Ladies and gentlemen of the press; Dear Elders, Dear Friends; General Officers; officers; Non-commissioned officers and non-commissioned members Ladies and gentlemen, your ranks, ranks and qualities are respected. Gabonese, Gabonese, My dear compatriots I would like to begin this speech by addressing with a grateful heart, thanksgiving to Almighty God. It is thanks to his constantly renewed kindness for our country Gabon that we can proudly stand here this morning in this Chamber of the Palace of Renovation. This same God, who spoke to us on the morning of August 30, 2023, and who continues to speak to us, is the one who has led our steps here. Allow me to remind you of the words spoken by the late President Omar BONGO in this room, at the end of 42 years of reign after the late President Léon MBA, first President of Gabon: ”God did not give us the right to do with Gabon what we are doing, he is watching us. He says have fun. The day when he also wants to sanction us, he will do it” This sentence filled with wisdom, was in reality the voice of God who ended up accomplishing his will for the Gabonese people today. Gabonese, Gabonese, my dear compatriots Allow me to express my sincere thanks to all those who, many, very many, made the trip to take part in this investiture ceremony. I have a special thought for all the Gabonese of the Diaspora who follow this ceremony from where they are. But above all I have a special thought for all our compatriots who would have dreamed of living this day but have preceded us in the afterlife. I am thinking of all the supporters of change and alternation: Simon Oyono Aba’a, Martine Oulabou, Pierre Louis Agondjo Okawè, Pierre Mamboundou Mamboundou, André Mba Obame to name but a few. As the former Ghanaian President, Jerry John Rawlings said, “When the people are crushed by their leaders, with the complicity of the judges, it is up to the army to set them free”. It is in this spirit that on August 30, 2023, like a meteorite in the dark night, the Defense and Security Forces of our country took their responsibilities by refusing the electoral coup that had just been announced by by the Gabonese Elections Center following an outrageously biased electoral process. It was without any violence, without clashes and without bloodshed that the Committee for the Transition and the Restoration of Institutions (CTRI) changed the regime in place, which had been confiscating the power of the institutions of the Republic for several years, in defiance blatant democratic rules. This unprecedented patriotic action will undoubtedly remain a “school case” in the annals of history. The Republican army is part of the refusal to endorse a crime which would have, once too many, cost the lives of many citizens. The people simply demand that their rights be guaranteed through functioning institutions. The defense and security forces had a double choice: either kill Gabonese, who would have legitimately demonstrated, or put an end to a loaded electoral process, the conditions of which did not allow for democratic expression. It is with all responsibility that we said: “NO. Never again in our beautiful country Gabon! “. This is an opportunity for us to thank the support of the people who spontaneously joined in this patriotic act. Our astonishment is great when we hear certain international institutions condemn the act of soldiers who have only respected their oath under the flag: to save the Fatherland at the cost of their lives. Desmond Tutu said, and I quote him “if you are neutral in the face of a situation of injustice, it is because you have chosen to be on the side of the oppressor”. We, Defense and Security Forces, have chosen to be on the side of the people and freedom. Like General De Gaulle once. My Dear Compatriots, The constitution is the founding text of a state. It consecrates its institutions, its particular procedures and the mechanisms of representation no longer managed to put our society in a position to follow. It is therefore important that Gabonese of all strata agree to adopt, by referendum, a new constitution as well as an electoral code and a reliable penal code, which guarantees equal opportunities for all. Our country deserves strong, credible institutions, clean governance, more in line with international standards in terms of respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law. I also emphasize that Gabon is an indivisible country, in the diversity of its cultures, its ethnic complexity and its geography. The unity of our people must always be the essential condition for the exercise of our fundamental freedoms. I will personally ensure this throughout the transition period. Just as I undertake that the centuries-old relations between Gabonese and our foreign brothers will always be relations of great friendship, tolerance and harmony. Politics and administration in a country are areas of national sovereignty, to say so is in no way xenophobia. My Dear Compatriots A few days ago, the Committee for the Transition and the Restoration of Institutions undertook consultations with all the living forces of the Nation. The concerns raised are legitimate and clear. Also, with the government that will be set up in a few days, made up of experienced people and people with proven competence, we will strive to give everyone reasons to hope for a better life. Here and now, I solemnly undertake to spare no effort so that, at the end of this transition, our country will be endowed with strong, democratic and credible institutions. Dear compatriots, In international law it is said that relations between states are above persons. In other words, men pass and the State remains. Gabon was one of the founding members of many regional and sub-regional organizations, and as such intends to fully play its role in the concert of nations. People of Gabon, Today, the happy times dreamed of by our ancestors are finally coming to us. We therefore need profound changes, resulting from our common reflection. This is why I am already instructing the future government to reflect without delay on the mechanisms to be put in place in order to: Facilitate the return to the country of all political exiles; Restore the scholarship for secondary school students; Amnesty prisoners of conscience; Financing the national economy with local partners and local financial institutions; Create synergy, with the support of local banks, for the payment of pensions for retirees; Revise the conditions for granting Gabonese nationality; Revise land laws in the Gabonese Republic. At the end of this transition, with the contribution of all Gabonese development partners, we intend to hand over power to civilians by organizing new free, transparent and credible elections in peace. Tribute to the founding fathers of our beautiful Nation. Gabonese people, it is finally our flight towards happiness. Honor and fidelity to the fatherland. Thank you.