The Journey Of Former First Lady Of Gabon From Presidency To Libreville Central Prison

The Journey Of Former First Lady Of Gabon From Presidency To Libreville Central Prison

“Affaire l”Inedit” – That Was How State Tv Described The Drama

Lawyers Talk Of Alleged Embezzlement Of Hundreds Of Billions FCFA By The Former First Lady Of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo

It Looks Like The Main Targets Of The August 30, 2023 Palace Coup In Gabon, Was The Then First Lady And Her Son, Noureddin

There Is Reportedly Incessant Pressure By Leaders Of Other Member States Of The Central African Region, For The Release Of Former First Lady Of Gabon

Last Month, A Rumour Floated On The Social Media That A Plan Was Being Allegedly Worked Out In Gabon, To Enable The Detained Former First Lady And Her Son, To ‘Escape’ From Detention And Leave The Country

The allegation or charges of embezzlement of public funds for which the former First Lady of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo, was placed on pre-trial detention on October 12, is in connection to the charges of embezzlement of public funds, for which the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency in Gabon, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, was jailed in 2021, precisely at the Libreville Central Prison.

The story, or better still, the allegation, goes that the French born First Lady of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo, influenced his husband, President Ali ben Bongo, to appoint her fellow French man, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, as Director of Cabinet. He was given a lot of powers. When in 2018 President Ali Bongo suffered from a severe stroke and spent several months in Saudi Arabia for treatment, and later also spent several months in Morocco for ‘recuperation’, the French man, Laccruche as he was simply called, was virtually the Acting President of Gabon. The Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Laccruche, had the powers through high instructions, to demand that the Minister of Finance makes available huge sums of money, without rendering any account.

Even when President Bongo finally returned to Gabon, he as was still in bad shape as a result of the severe stroke, and so Laccruche remained the all – powerful Director of Cabinet, or better still, the Acting President of Gabon.

Anti – Corruption Operation Nets Laccruche

But then later, lots of rumours were circulating in Gabon that Laccruche and some other authorities had taken advantage of President Ali Bongo’s situation, to loot and plunder the country’s financial resources. Apparently, Laccruche too had started falling out of favour with the First Lady, Sylvia Bongo. The Ali Bongo Government launched an anti –corruption operation, and Laccruche was one of those that fell into the dragnet, for alleged embezzlement of huge sums of public funds, and was thrown into prison.

But during the trial , as well as since his imprisonment in 2021, Laccruche was quoted to had repeatedly sworn that he did not embezzle, and also repeatedly pleaded that the Judiciary should create an opportunity for him to have a face – face ‘confrontation’ on the issue in court with the then First Lady, Sylvia Bongo. The French man, Laccruche, who had seemingly thought that her ‘big sister’ the First Lady , French born Sylvia Bongo, would use her influence and rescue him from going to prison, felt betrayed and abandoned by her.

Laccruche Accuses First Lady, Sylvia Bongo

The long and short of the story as to why the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, wanted to have a face –to face ‘confrontation’ in court with the then First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, was that he claimed that he disbursed all the hundreds of billions of francs CFA that he was accused to had embezzlement, to the First Lady, and that the disbursements were all done on her demand. A bulk of the money was allegedly disbursed when President Ali Bongo suffered from stroke and was in Saudi Arabia and later Morocco, for a very long time. French man, Laccruche, alleged that the First Lady made frequent demands for huge sums of money, claiming that she was acting on the directives of her husband, President Ali Bongo.

Suffice to say Laccruche was ‘ignored’, as no judicial authority then could dare summon the First Lady to appear in court or wherever, to answer to questions related to the charges of embezzlement for which he was in prison. But even though the Judiciary could not dare to summon the First Lady to appear in court, the Judiciary however knew that in normal situation, Mrs Sylvia Bongo would have appeared in court in that case file, following the allegations that were made by the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency.

The Fall Of Ali Bongo And His Wife

Meanwhile as aforementioned, President Ali Bongo, and thus the First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, fell from power on August 30, following the coup d’etat, and that while Ali Bongo was freed from house arrest a week later, his wife was continuously held under house arrest. It should be noted that the new Military Leader of Gabon, General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, knew well the case file of alleged embezzlement of funds against the former Director of Cabinet, Brice Laccruche Alihanga. As a member of the Bongo Family, and also being somebody who was quite close and trusted by President Ali Bongo, there were even certain things or facts that General Oligui Nguema apparently knew about the alleged embezzlement of huge sums of public funds by Laccruche, that even the Judiciary, did not know.

That was why one week after the coup d’etat, General Oligui Nguema who had become the Military Leader of Gabon, ordered that Ali Bongo should be freed from house arrest, but that the wife, Sylvia Bongo, should be maintained under house arrest. It was a strange or even unprecedented happening, that a President of the Republic ousted from power by a coup d’etat is freed from house arrest, while his wife is still held under house arrest. This was apparently because General Oligui Nguema, knew that Mrs Sylvia Bongo would have to answer questions in a number of matters, especially in the case against the former Director of Cabinet, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, for embezzlement of public funds.

Former First Lady Meets Examining Magistrate And Laccruche

Meanwhile according to a report over State Tv in Gabon, which the female presenter of the 8 pm news referred to as “Presidential Communication”, in the morning of Wednesday, October 11, 2023, the former First Lady of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo Ondimba, was on the instruction of the Examining Magistrate handling the file of alleged embezzlement of public funds involving her, taken out of house arrest to the High Court in Libreville. While there, she was first taken to a court room, for a ‘confrontation’ with the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, who had been brought in from the Central Prison.

Tv images showed Mrs Sylvia Bongo who was simply dressed in a T. Shirt and trouser enter the court room, and was directed to sit on a bench. Directly opposite her was another bench on which sat Laccruche and his three legal counsels (two males and one female). Mrs Sylvia Bongo was all alone on her bench, without a legal counsel. The Tv report did not show how the confrontation between Laccuche and Mrs Bongo rolled on. Tv images shown in the report, showed that at the end of the confrontation between Laccruche and Mrs Bongo, the former left the court room with his lawyers, while the latter remained seated on the bench, all alone.

Laccruche’s Best Companion Becomes The Bible

Meanwhile as was noted in the Tv report, the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency of Gabon, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, has since his imprisonment in 2021, become a highly religious person. It is said that the Bible became his best companion, and that he never separated with his Bible. It is said that Laccruche spent his time in prison reading the Bible over and over, and also preaching to his fellow inmates.

Laccruche came to court on that October 11 holding in Bible. When he sat down on the bench in court, he placed the Bible on his lap, and reportedly held it firmly throughout the ‘confrontation’ between him and Ms Bongo. Tv images showed that while in court, Laccruche seized any little opportunity to read his Bible. However, critics say Laccruche embraced the Bible only when he ran into trouble. Laccruche was not known to have had the Bible as close companion, when he was the powerful Director of Cabinet at the Presidency.

Embezzlement Of Hundreds Of Billions Francs CFA

Meanwhile after the court session, the lawyers of the former Director of Cabinet at the President (Brice Laccruche Alihanga) spoke to the State Tv outside the courtroom. As expected, the lawyers said their client was innocent, and that the real embezzler was the former First Lady, Mrs Sylvia Bongo. They claimed their clients had genuine and concrete evidences to show that the money he was accused of having embezzled, were all disbursed to the then First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, on her demand.

As to the total sum of money that the then First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, allegedly embezzled through the then Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, the lawyers would not give a precise figure, but said the total sum of money was in “hundreds of billions francs CFA”.

Laccruche’s Lawyers Push All Blame On Mrs Bongo

Meanwhile Laccruche’s lawyers that presented Mrs Sylvia Bongo as a sort of pathological liar, disclosed that during the court session she flatly denied all what their client’s said as regard the disbursements of money to her, and that she persisted in her denial even when evidences were allegedly presented. They also accused Mrs Bongo of having displayed a condescending attitude towards Laccruche and them, and that she had perhaps not yet realized that she was no longer First Lady of Gabon.

As typical of lawyers, Laccruche’s lawyers painted their client to be as white as an angel, insisting that he was innocent of the charges of embezzlement of public funds. Again, as typical of lawyers, Laccruche’s lawyers in talking to the media pushed the entire culpability for the embezzlement of the hundreds of billions of francs CFA of public fun ds on Mrs Bongo. Even while the case is still was still be heard, the lawyers also said that they looking forward to the rapid liberation of their client, and also wondered what would be done to repair the image of their ‘innocent client’, that has been so badly damaged by his imprisonment for alleged embezzlement of public funds.

From the look of things, Laccruche’s lawyers were already trying to manipulate public opinion to see their client as an innocent man in the embezzlement case. One thing the lawyers evaded to talk about was the legality of the acts that their client allegedly carried out. Was is legal for the Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, to have been collecting huge sums of public funds, and handing them to the First Lady as he claimed? Even if that was case, it is also difficult to believe that Laccruche , the Director of Cabinet that became so powerful in Gabon, did not also embezzle part of the large sums of public funds that were regularly in his keeping.

Being Unfair To The Former First Lady

Meanwhile, it was not explained in the “Presidential Communication” presented by the State Tv, why the imprisoned former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, was allowed to come to court for the face –to – face confrontation on October 11 accompanied by his lawyers, while the former First Lady, Mrs Sylvia Bongo Ondimba, was brought to court without any legal counsel. Legal minds would consider such a situation as unfair. It is difficult to imagine that Mrs Bongo was the one that refused to be accompanied by her lawyers. It is even uncertain, that Mrs Bongo that was under house arrest knew in the morning of that October 11, that she was being taken to face Laccruche in a face –to –face confrontation in court.

Also, while the lawyers of Laccruche at the end of the court session spoke to the State media which appeared to had been the only media organ present, there was nobody to give Mrs Sylvia Bongo’s own side of the story,, as she was brought to court without a lawyer or legal counsel.

Judging from other issues, it is very likely, not to talk of being certain, that Mrs Sylvia Bongo who was reportedly notorious for living an extravagant life with her son, Noureddin Bongo, Valentin, and who thus had a lot of interest in money, viciously exploited her husband’s sickness and absence from Gabon for a longtime, to indulge in the embezzlement of public funds. But to say that Laccruche who too was reportedly living a life of affluence when he was the powerful Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, did not also take advantage of the situation of President Ali Bongo to embezzle, is definitely not true.

Former First Lady Sent To The Central Prison

Meanwhile according to the Tv report, after the face –to –face confrontation between Mrs Sylvia Bongo and Laccruche ended in the afternoon of Wednesday, October 11, Mrs Bongo was taken to the office of the Examining Magistrate handling the matter, where she was interrogated for several hours. She was held there up to the wee hours of Thursday, October 12, when she was taken to the Central Prison in Libreville for pre-trial detention. Tv images showed her being taken away from the court in the heart of the night by plain cloth security men, with her head covered with a pullover, as if to hide her face. It was not clear whether it was Mrs Bongo that decided to cover her head, or it was the security guys that asked her to do it. The news presented at the State Tv rightly referred to the drama which saw the former powerful First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, leaves from Gabon’s Presidency to the Libreville Central Prison for detention as ‘Affaire l’Inedit’. That is a strange or unprecedented happening.

An Unfair “Presidential Communication”

But again observers would agree that the “Presidential Communication” as the State Tv termed the report on what happened in court on that October 11, was unfair to the former First Lady of Gabon. First of all, Laccruche as aforementioned was assisted by his lawyers in the face –to – face confrontation with Mrs Bongo who was all alone. At the end of the court session, the lawyers of Laccruche gave his own side of the story to the State media present, while there was nobody to give Mrs Bongo’s own side of the story. Also, the fact that the “Presidential Communication” included the one –sided declarations that Laccruche’s lawyers made, raised questions as to whether the Military junta headed by General Brice Clotaire Oilgui Nguema, cousin of former President Ali Bongo, wanted to free Laccruche and incriminate Mrs Bongo alone for the alleged embezzlement of public funds.

Former Director Of Cabinet, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, Released

It came to pass that less than two weeks after the former First Lady of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo, was thrown into the Central Prison in Libreville for pre –trial detention, the jailed former Director of Cabinet, Brice Laccruche Alihanga, was reported to had been quietly released from the same prison where he had been since 2021. Though the condition under which he was released was not clear. Without any surprise, Laccruche was quoted to have slammed the former First Lady and the ousted regime of Ali Bongo, and praised the new military regime headed by General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema.

Meanwhile, it is not still clear whether the military junta in Gabon instructed that the former Director of Cabinet at the Presidency, Laccruche Alihanga, be released on bail, or whether he was set free. As aforementioned, the lawyers of Laccruche claimed that he was innocent, and that all the hundreds of billions of francs CFA that he was accused to had embezzled, were all taken from him by the then First Lady, Sylvia Bongo. That of course CANNOT be true. Laccruche definitely chopped part of money.

Main Target Of August 30 Palace Coup

From the look of things, the main target of the August 30, 2023 Palace Coup In Gabon, that was led by the then Commander of the Republican Guard, Brigadier General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, the cousin of the ousted President of the Republic, Ali ben Bongo Ondimba, was the First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, and his son, Noureddin Bongo Valentin.

As the Boss of the Republican Guard in Gabon which is in charge of the security of the President of the Republic, the Presidency and the President’s immediate family, and as the former Director of the Secret Service of Gabon, and as a member of the President Ali Bongo’s Family, General Oligui Nguema certainly knew so well how the Frist Lady or the cousin’s wife, Sylvia Bongo, and her son, Noureddin, were embezzling or stealing huge sums of State funds. How Sylvia and her son, Noureddin, were taking advantage of the very poor health situation of President Ali Bongo, to embezzle or steal huge amounts of State funds. How the two, especially Noureddin, were openly and constantly living extravagant life style, which was insulting to the Gabonese people.

Mrs Sylvia Bongo was not only stealing State funds, she was also allegedly indulged in the stealing of State property. The First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, reportedly had a real estate company, and there were questions as to how some State owned buildings became the property of her real estate company.

“President Ali Bongo Was Not Supposed To Run For Another Mandate in 2023”

Meanwhile Brigadier General Oligui Nguema had hoped that President Ali Bongo who been incapacitated in a number of ways by the severe stroke he suffered in 2018, would leave power at the end of his second mandate in 2023. But unfortunately President Ali Bongo, insisted to run for a third mandate of another seven years. This was apparently due partly by the influence of the wife, Sylvia, and his first son, Noureddin, who wanted him to run for another mandate, certainly for their selfish interests.

On that same August 30, 2023 that the Palace Coup took place in Gabon, the new strongman, General Oligui Nguema, told the French media that the ousted President of the Republic, Ali Bongo, was not supposed to run for a third mandate, considering his heath situation. He did not conceal the fact that he did not intend to put his cousin, the ousted President Ali Bongo, on trial as the excited population of Gabon were expecting. Rather he said Ali Bongo would go retirement and live a normal life, while taking care of health. As aforementioned, one week after the Palace Coup, the Military Leader of Gabon, General Oligui Nguema, ordered that the ousted President, Ali Bongo, who was under house arrest, should be set free, and that was done.

But as reported by THE MENTOR in another article or analysis, the former Gabonese President, Ali Bongo, who is the cousin of Brigadier General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, has reportedly declared that he would not leave the country to settle elsewhere, without his wife, Sylvia, and his first son, Noureddin. This definitely increases pressure on his cousin and military leader of Gabon, General Oligui Nguema.

Allegation Of Panic Among Other First Ladies / Demand For Her Release

Meanwhile the President of the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions in Gabon, Brigadier General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, is said to be under pressure from the leaders of the other countries of CEEAC, to release the former First Lady of Gabon, Sylvia Bongo, who has been under pre-trial detention at the Central Prison in Libreville since October 12, 2023, for alleged embezzlement of huge amounts of public funds. The demand by the leaders in Central Africa, for the release of the detained First Lady, is said to have put General Oligui Nguema in a very difficult situation. After all what the military regime has told the Gabonese people in particular and the world at large, about the serious criminal acts that were allegedly committed by the former First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, and her eldest son, Noureddin, how can the regime liberate them?

It should be noted what happened in Gabon was unprecedented in Africa and probably the world at large. What normally, happens the world over is that, when a President is ousted from power by a coup d’etat or palace coup, it is the ousted President that is arrested and detained, while his wife and children go free. But last year in Gabon there was a situation where after a coup, the ousted President, Ali Bongo, was liberated after barely one week of house arrest, and it was instead his wife, Sylvia Bongo, who was placed under house arrest for over one month, and later moved to the Central Prison in the nation’s capital for pre – trial detention.

This has reportedly caused panic, among other First Ladies in the Central African Region in particular and the African Continent in general. In the face of this, the First Ladies in Central Africa are said to be mounting pressure on their husbands, to on their part pressurized the military leader of Gabon, General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, to release the detained former First Lady, Sylvia Bongo. Besides the sympathy that the First Ladies have for their former Gabonese colleague, Sylvia Bongo, the First Ladies are said to be afraid that what happened in Gabon might be adopted as a new system by coup plotters, that when there is a coup d’etat or a palace coup in a country in Arica, the First Lady should also be arrested and jailed.

Meanwhile last month an allegation floated that a plan was being secretly worked out with the complicity of the leadership of the military regime in Gabon, to enable the incarcerated former First Lady, Sylvia Bongo, and her eldest son, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, to ‘escape’ from their pre-trial detention, and leave the country. It is not known if the allegation was true or false, but so far nothing has happened, as Mrs Bongo and her son are still in detention in Libreville.