Gabon / Bongo is dead

[215/DHC6]

just read on the BBC that Omar Bongo is dead, it also states that air, land, and sea borders are closed and the internet has been cut. Having worked in Gabon and come to admire the Gabonese people I hope this goes well for them, and also for expat air crew working there.

[Arik]

I also heard on AlJaz that they'll be in mourning for 30days as a nation & they way AlJaz put it; everything will remain closed till that's over!

Arik

[Solid Rust Twotter]

The drums beats no more......










Sorry... sorry.... Couldn't let that go by unmolested...:}

[jlahan]

Please house don't let us turn this forum to newspaper review stand.may his soul rest in peace

[grjplanes]

What exactly is meant by borders closed off? Is nobody allowed in or out. Does airlines just have to suspend their flights and rebook pax? It doesn't sound like a very good idea to me to cut yourself off from the world for a month.

[Siguarda al fine]

If I find out where they bury the SOB I will go pee on his grave. Good ridance to a piece of cr+p

[flyingmasai]

Likewise!!!

[flyingmasai]

Just waiting for Mugabe to follow the same path (to hell) and Africa will be a better place.

[VP8]

Airspace now open again

FCCCYNYX
(A0839/09 NOTAMC A0837/09
Q)FCCC/QXXXX/IV/NBO/AE/000/999//
A)FOXX B)2009-06-09 10:30:00 C)
E)GABON:AIR BORDERS ARE OPENED. INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS ON DEPARTURE
AND IN THE ARRIVAL ARE APPROUVED

[dc9-32]

But who controls the FIR ? The country or the region ?????

[SIERRA ECHO XRAY]

As it is in Africa...when some dictator dies suddenly....tensions for power mount from all sides especially the military. I don't know much about Gabon, but this I will say, I have heard no so good reviews about that bastard...Mugabe needs to follow then Kibaki.....And one by one , Africa will become a much better place.

[Coil]

:DGood riddance to a dictator who has had his country under wraps for 40 years, his family owns everything of any value in Gabon and there's the French President Sarkozy all smiles and handshakes waiting for his next puppy, kinda makes one sick

[Mobotu]

Finally after 41 years this tyrant is gone! It's about time this beautiful country moved forward to join the wealth of African Nations who respect the rule of law and the constitution upon which independence was granted all those years ago. I do hope they uphold theirs which requires a presidential election within 45 days and not simpy hand down the reigns to one of his siblings.....Good luck to those who grace Gabon's blue skys!:)

[B Sousa]

It's about time this beautiful country moved forward to join the wealth of African Nations who respect the rule of law


WHAT are you Smokin?????

[Lamyna Flo]

It's about time this beautiful country moved forward to join the wealth of African Nations who respect the rule of law and the constitution upon which independence was granted all those years ago.

Sorry, but ROFPMSL. And which African Nations would these be?

:D

[Cave Troll]

Please just confirm you are refering to the Gabon in west africa because if you are I am afraid you are a bit mistaken my friend. There ain't no "rule of law" in africa mate. Even good old SA which is possibly the closest thing to the first world we have here in africa there is no "rule of law". I have flown all over africa most of my aviation career and after 16 odd years I am still looking for a "rule of law" in africa. I hope it all goes well in Gabon as it is definately by far the best in west africa but sadly my friend considering how things work in the rest of africaI doubt it.

ct

[SIERRA ECHO XRAY]

True to form, the late Gabonese leader, like the legion of post-colonial African presidents and freebooters, came to power and relegated his citizenry to mere spectators of the plunder and rape of their natural resources. And like his contemporaries, Bongo’s legacy is abject poverty.
In the minds of his people, Bongo was president-for-life, having smothered and bribed the opposition into submission, leaving no serious challenge to his authority that made him Africa’s — nay, the world’s — longest serving president. http://www.eastandard.net/images/sunday/sunday140609_01.jpgOmar Bongo Ondimba

The departed leader, a midget just over four feet tall, was easily recognisable because of his heavy-soled footwear that was predictably more than half a foot high (what Kenyans call ‘platforms’) that gave him the extra inches he craved. Being short — almost a dwarf — planted in him a few oddities, which psychologists usually explain as the ‘compensation factor’ for his brief stature.
What he lacked in height, he made it up with a sense of exaggerated self-importance that had all the ingredients of a dictator. According to accounts, the physiological challenges were not accidental. The natives of Gabon were originally the Baka, a community of pygmies. When among them, he was the tallest! Bongo’s genetic composition, according to the US Department of State, is traced to the pygmies. However, his administration neglected them.
For his competence in French and exquisite manners, the BBC described Bongo last week as ‘France’s Minister for African Affairs’ because of his role in francophone Africa.
The Daily Telegraph described Bongo as "a diminutive, dapper figure, who conversed in flawless French and alternateduired, Bongo treated Gabon as a self-obsessed landlord treats his private estate. He considered everything inside its borders to be his personal property and elevated corruption to a method of government."
This description fits his contemporaries, who belong to a club of African strongmen who suppressed democracy but elevated autocracy to levels that earned them the moniker ‘the last dinosaurs of African politics’. They are derided as dinosaurs as they are perceived to be relics of the continent’s tyrannical past that is inconsistent with the changing dispensation.
Writing recently in The National, Chris Hennemeyer, who lived and worked in Africa for over 20 years, says Bongo was one of the last remaining ‘dinosaurs’ — as Francophone Africans call them: rulers who came to power decades ago, often through force of arms and who are largely unconcerned with the current emphasis on democracy. "There are only a few in this category, although none with quite the longevity of Bongo, and interestingly most are the leaders of large petroleum exporting states such as Angola, the Congo Republic and Libya." http://www.eastandard.net/images/sunday/sunday140609_03.jpgBongo with French President Sarkozy

Hennemeyer says with the dinosaurs still in power, Africa was not amenable to reforms. "Nonetheless, the dinosaurs are all ageing and their passing may finally sound the death knell for the long, painful era of African ‘big man’ politics," he writes.
"Fortunately, for every bizarre big man, there are also serious and well-intentioned people at the heads of African governments. In recent years, elected leaders in countries such as Benin, Ghana, Liberia, South Africa and Tanzania have proven that democratic governance is not at odds with social and economic progress," he adds.
Web of financial frauds
Bongo’s estimated personal fortune is put at close to $9 billion (Sh700 billion), roughly equivalent to Kenya’s annual national Budget. Various accounts place him among the world’s richest top ten leaders, although his riches accrued from pilferage of national resources that has transformed extreme poverty into an endemic phenomenon. This is despite the tiny West African nation being among leading oil producers in the continent.
The departed president’s massive wealth, most of which is stashed in multiple accounts in France, where in his twilight years he had run afoul of President Nicholas Sarkozy’s regime.
The US State Department’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2000 says Bongo was one of the wealthiest heads of state in the world, with this attributed primarily from the benefits of oil revenue and alleged corruption.
"In 2005, an investigation by the United States Senate Indian Affairs Committee into fundraising irregularities by lobbyist Jack Abramoff revealed that Abramoff had offered to arrange a meeting between US President George W Bush and Bongo for the sum of $9 million (Sh72 million). Although such an exchange of funds remains unproven, Bush met with Bongo ten months later in the Oval Office," it says, providing a rare peek into the intricate web of financial frauds in which Africa’s longest serving president had been sucked into.
It adds that during his reign, the media was a public enemy number one. "Journalists are subject to the Communication Code, a law that specifies their rights and responsibilities. Libel can be either a criminal offence or a civil matter." http://www.eastandard.net/images/sunday/sunday140609_02.jpgBongo and his children during his wife’s funeral. Photos: AP/Internet

Laws enacted under him provided for rights of women in bizarre manner. For instance, says State Department, "By law couples must stipulate at the time of marriage whether they intend to adhere to a monogynous or a polygynous relationship.
It goes on to say, "For monogynous married couples, a common property law provides for the equal distribution of assets after divorce. In a polygynous marriage, husbands are obligated to give all wives the same level of financial support; however, he may marry additional wives without permission from his existing wives. Wives who leave polygynous husbands receive half of their existing support as a one-time payment. In inheritance cases, the husband’s family must issue a written authorisation before his widow can inherit property. Common law marriage, which is accepted socially and widely practiced, affords a woman no property rights."
The law also requires that a woman obtain her husband’s permission to travel abroad, although the requirement is not enforced consistently.
To his credit, primary education is compulsory and it is a criminal offence for a Gabonese parent to bar a child from attending school.


Read all about: gabon (http://www.eastandard.net/mag/InsidePage.php?incl=allabout&kywrd=gabon)dictator (http://www.eastandard.net/mag/InsidePage.php?incl=allabout&kywrd=dictator)guinea Bissau (http://www.eastandard.net/mag/InsidePage.php?incl=allabout&kywrd=guinea)

[captplaystation]

Speaking of height complex and platform soles, think there is a photo of another misfit half way down this post :rolleyes:

[arf1410]

Is Bongo still dead? I thought I read something that there was a change of plans, and he may no longer be dead after this wekend? :}

[smogluver]

Mugabe is next the champagne is on ice