Former Senate President Roger Ossebi Ondo was reportedly caught trying to abscond with a bag filled with a huge amount of money on Thursday, a day after a coup d’état overthrew President Ali Bongo Ondimba.
Ondo was stopped by security officials as he was heading to board a plane to France. The bags he was carrying was found to contain over $1 million in cash.
Ondo was the Senate President from 2016 to 2021. He is a member of the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party.
It remains to be seen how the incident will impact Gabon’s economy and its political stability.
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The coup d’état that overthrew Bongo Ondimba was the latest in a series of political upheavals in Gabon. Bongo Ondimba’s father, Omar Bongo, overthrew the country’s first president, Léon M’ba, in 1967. Ali Bongo Ondimba took over from his father in 2009.
Bongo Ondimba has been accused of corruption and human rights abuses. He has also been criticized for his close ties to France.
It remains to be seen how the coup will impact Gabon’s political future. However, the people of Gabon have clearly expressed their desire for change.