Hervé Patrick Opiangah: The escape that ridicules Oligui's military junta
What a play in Gabon! Hervé Patrick Opiangah, former Minister of Mines and ally of Oligui, today accused of incest for an affair dating back several years and pursued by the authorities, played a trick of Trafalgar by taking to the sea to evaporate before the wide-eyed eyes of the Gabonese junta. It is not every day that a man so closely monitored manages to leave the country, especially when it is claimed that the military controls every corner of the territory. So, how can we explain this fiasco? The regime of Brice Oligui Nguema seems more disorganized than ever, and this escape highlights the deep fractures that shake his power.
A leak under high surveillance: but what are the soldiers doing?
Hervé Patrick Opiangah has escaped the vigilance of those who boast of having full powers. That is where the problem lies. While some are agitating to strengthen the curfew in Libreville and bring it back to 10 p.m. – an absurd suggestion to make up for their incompetence – one question remains: how was such a targeted man able to navigate peacefully for more than 24 hours? Could he have benefited from complicity within the very forces supposed to be tracking him?
Gabon's borders under Brice Oligui seem as porous as an old fishing net. Whether through negligence or complicity within the junta, this escape illustrates a total loss of control. Even more serious, the population and even some military personnel are beginning to lose faith in a regime that is collapsing under the weight of its own contradictions.
Oligui's Witch Hunt: A Political Boomerang
Brice Oligui Nguema is multiplying the offensives against his former allies, and this tactic is now turning against him. After Opiangah, who will be next on the list? Pascaline Bongo, Oyima, and many others have already paid the price. Who will be the other pawns to fall from grace? This climate of distrust is feeding a poisonous atmosphere within the military apparatus itself. Result: instead of governing with a firm hand, Oligui finds himself isolated, accusing other countries or heads of state of harboring his fugitive. Was he hoping that Opiangah would be handed to him on a platter as he himself handed Ramon Cotta, the Cameroonian opponent arrested in Gabon in July?
In this chaos, the so-called international allies of the "Transition" are conspicuous by their absence. Oligui has nevertheless spared no effort in shaking hands in all four corners of the planet in recent times. But no country, no power, large or small, seems to be rushing to help the Gabonese junta recover its fugitive. This silence speaks volumes about Oligui's declining credibility on the international scene. By targeting those close to him in the past, the general is further isolating himself, reinforcing the image of a power that is drifting.
The image of a fragmented military power
Hervé Patrick Opiangah's escape is a perfect metaphor for the disastrous management of Gabon under the junta. The military who were supposed to embody order and discipline have become the symbol of a worrying laxity. The borders are not secure, surveillance operations are ineffective, and trust is crumbling day by day. This situation suggests that the Republican Guard itself is experiencing internal tensions. Perhaps some within it saw this escape as a way of sending a message to the general.
To top it all off, the Gabonese population, which had initially welcomed the transition as an alternative to the Bongo regime, is watching this farce with bitterness. How can one believe in a power that is incapable of catching a man, but quick to tighten the screws on individual freedoms?
Hervé Patrick Opiangah, in his incredible escape, has revealed the limits and flaws of Oligui Nguema's military apparatus. A flight that is not only a humiliation for the regime, but a warning for all of Gabon: this power, supposed to embody the transition, could well already be collapsing. Time is running out, but Oligui seems incapable of getting things back on track. And while his opponents sail for other shores, an entire country is drowning in uncertainty.
