Former Gabonese politician Ali Bongo Ondimba, also known as Ali Bongo and Ali Ben Bongo, served as Gabon’s third president from 2009 to 2023. He is from the Democratic Party of Gabon. Omar Bongo, who presided over Gabon from 1967 until his passing in 2009, is his father.
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His Early Life
The son of Albert-Bernard Bongo (later Omar Bongo Ondimba) and Josephine Kama (later Patience Dabany), Ali Bongo was born Alain-Bernard Bongo in Brazzaville.
At the time of his birth, his mother was 18. He was born 18 months before their marriage, and despite Bongo’s denials, rumors are swirling that he was adopted.
In 1973, Alain-Bernard changed his name to Ali, along with his father. In 2003, they took the Obamba patronymic “Ondimba” in honor of Omar’s father, Basile Ondimba.
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Starting Of His Career
He started politics in 1981 after completing his studies in law and was elected to the PDG Central Committee during the party’s Third Extraordinary Congress in March 1983.
The Gabonese Democratic Party is also known as the PDG. He then served as his father’s representative to the PDG, serving in that role since 1984 when he joined the PDG Political Bureau. In September 1986, he was subsequently chosen to the Political Bureau at a regular party congress.
He was elected to the National Assembly in Haut-Ogooué Province as a PDG candidate in the 1990 legislative election, which was the first election held following the establishment of multiparty politics.
After serving for two years as foreign minister, a 1991 constitutional change that required ministers to be 35 or older caused him to leave the administration.
A parliamentary representative of the opposition alliance Alternance 2023, which selected Ossa as its joint nominee.
Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg
On election day, it was allegedly impossible for independent observers and foreign journalists to enter Gabon. Following the voting, the Gabonese authorities enforced a curfew and limited internet access and media broadcasts from French news organizations. We will get into these facts further in this article.
Net Worth Of Ali Bongo
Ali Bongo Ondimba inherited his father’s political status and commercial holdings, which he leveraged to build up personal wealth worth an estimated $1 billion. Despite this, his achievement has sparked debate.
Recently, he has been accused of mismanaging the country’s economy and abusing his position to benefit himself and his family.
Documents show that Ali Bongo owns more than a dozen luxurious cars, some of which he loves joyriding in the desert, while the rest of the population suffers from insufficient food supply.
Coming back to the recent issue, it is reported that the military seized power on Wednesday, shortly after Gabon’s election authorities reported that President Bongo had been re-elected in the previous election with 64.27% of the vote. The military captured the Presidential Palace in Libreville minutes later.
The junta later announced that Bongo and his eldest son and adviser, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, had been arrested and held at home, saying that the two were being cared for by family and medics. The coup also detained several of Bongo’s presidential aides.
The junta said they faced treason, embezzlement, corruption, forging the president’s signature, and drug trafficking allegations.
