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Bongo for ever

The oil is dwindling but the President shows no such weakness

It is election year again in Gabon and there is no doubt who will win: President Omar Bongo Ondimba, who has presided over the now declining oil power since 1967. At 69, he is Africa's longest-serving ruler after President Gnassingbé Eyadéma of Togo and a decade ago, was wobbling under opposition pressure. After a dodgy election win in 1993, Bongo and his Parti Démocratique Gabonais (PDG) were persuaded to sign the Paris Accords of October 1994 and to share power with opposition leaders. All credible opposition has since been crushed or coopted....

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Bongo for ever

The oil is dwindling but the President shows no such weakness

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