August 31, 2026, marked a decade since the violent raid on the Libreville campaign headquarters of Jean Ping, remaining one of the most contentious moments of the 2016 post-election crisis in Gabon.
Following the presidential vote on August 27, 2016, which officially declared the incumbent leader Ali Bongo Ondimba as the winner, opposition forces under the leadership of Jean Ping disputed the outcome. In an atmosphere of escalating hostility, security forces executed a midnight raid between August 31 and September 1, 2016, targeting the opposition’s base in the capital city.
Eyewitness accounts and civil society advocates report that this assault resulted in fatalities, severe injuries, arbitrary detentions, and enforced disappearances. At the time, government officials defended the raid, asserting they were pursuing suspects linked to the arson of the National Assembly who had reportedly taken refuge inside the opposition headquarters.
Ten years later: Remembrance and demands for justice
To mark this anniversary, the citizen coalition Tournons La Page Gabon (TLP-Gabon) has renewed its calls for truth and accountability. The activist group points out that critical questions still linger without resolution: Who authorized the assault? What is the precise number of casualties? What official inquiries have actually been launched? Where are the remains of those who vanished?
TLP-Gabon insists that genuine and lasting national reconciliation is impossible without legal transparency regarding these events. To honor those affected, they have initiated a memorial campaign called “10 years, 10 faces” to humanize the victims. A decade later, grieving families and survivors continue their long wait for justice. To explore this issue, I am joined by four key figures:
- Virgilio Foumangoye, an economist and sustainable development consultant.
- Marc Ona Essangui, the current 5th Vice-President of the Senate and former president of Tournons la Page International.
- Frédéric Samy Passalet, an author, essayist, and PhD holder in Francophone literature specializing in African conflict prevention, who also wrote the essay “Les marionnettes de Poutine en Afrique”.
- Rodolphe Chauvet, a criminal defense lawyer at the Paris bar, collaborating with William Bourdon on the French legal proceedings of this case.
To listen to the complete discussion, click on the image above.