FACT CHECK: Was Gabon’s Senate President Caught Escaping With Bags of Money after the Coup? 

FACT CHECK: Was Gabon’s Senate President Caught Escaping With Bags of Money after the Coup? 

Claims: A viral video on social media shows a senior government official said to be a former Senate president in Gabon being accosted by the citizens of the country as he was fleeing with several suitcases loaded with cash.

Full Text: A group of top Gabonese military officers appeared on television to announce that they had overthrown the government following controversy over the re-election of President Ali Bongo who had spent 14 years in power.

Over the last three years, Africa has experienced 7 coups with the most recent being in West Africa’s Niger Republic and Central Africa’s Gabon. 

Out of the 486 attempted or successful military coups carried out globally since 1950, Africa accounts for the largest number with 214, of which at least 106 were successful.

The latest crisis in Gabon has opened the floodgates for misinformation and disinformation across online platforms with the latest video sighted by PRNigeria claiming that Gabon’s former Senate President was fleeing the country with stashes of stolen money after the coup. 

“Former Senate President of Gabon was arrested with a huge amount of CFA currency trying to escape from his country…shame to African leaders,” the text accompanying the video on WhatsApp reads. 

Verification: After thorough investigation by the PRNigeria fact check team, it was discovered that while it is true that a man was arrested with the suitcases filled with cash, the person in the video is not a recent former Senate President of Gabon. 

PRNigeria stumbled upon a news report in French published last year, precisely September 2022 with the photo of the same individual in the same attire as seen in the video. 

Following translation of the text, it was discovered that the person’s name is Guy Nzouba Ndama, a key figure in Gabonese politics. Nzouba-Ndama served as the president of the National Assembly for 19 years, spanning from January 1997 to March 2016. Following his tenure, he established his own political party, The Democrats, and aligned with the opposition. 

Guy Nzouba-Ndama, a prominent opposition figure was apprehended on September 17, 2022 at the border between Congo-Brazzaville and Gabon. He had just returned from Congo-Brazzaville and was found in possession of the three large suitcases filled with cash totaling approximately 1.19 billion FCFA. 

The arrest took place in Kabala, a border crossing point between the two countries.

Initially resisting a search of the luggage, Nzouba-Ndama asserted that the suitcases belonged to his wife and he lacked the keys to open them. However, security officials broke open the padlocks, revealing numerous bundles of 10 million FCFA notes, bearing ties from the Central Bank of Central African States.

With evidence of the act, he eventually admitted to the charges. He was unable to provide legal justification for the source of the funds. The origin of the funds was traced back to Congo-Brazzaville, where Nzouba-Ndama had stayed.

It was suspected that the funds might have been intended for financing his pre-election campaign. 

Conclusion:  PRNigeria’s findings reveal that indeed, Guy Nzouba-Ndama was a former President of Gabon’s National Assembly but the incident being depicted on the social media occurred a year ago and has resurfaced online following the recent coup in Gabon. 

PRNigeria therefore concludes that parading the incidence on social media as a recent occurrence is MISLEADING. 

By PRNigeria