Gabonese Supreme General Brice Oligui Nguema, the self appointed military junta leader of the small west African country since a successful 2023 coup ousted President Ali Bongo, scion of the family that had ruled the country for 56 years, announced Monday that “after careful reflection and in response to your many appeals,” he’s launching his campaign for the presidency in next month’s election, a transition back to democratic-ish governance promised after the coup, the BBC reports.
“I am a builder and I need your courage, your strength, to build this country,” Nguema told citizens gathered in a heavy downpour in the capital city of Libreville. The BBC notes that the campaign launch happened after “a new constitution and electoral code that critics argue were designed to favour [sic, freaking British and their extra vowels] a bid for the presidency by the junta leader.”