Gabon: the appointment of the former boss of the Constitutional Court as honorary president canceled
In Gabon, the Constitutional Court on February 2 annulled the appointment of its former boss from 1991 to 2023 to the position of honorary president. Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo was seen as a pillar of power led by the Bongo family.
[Archive image] Former President of the Constitutional Court of Gabon, Marie Madeleine Mborantsuo (center), arriving for an inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Palace on May 7, 2018 in Libreville, Gabon. AFP - STEEVE JORDAN
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The declaration sounds like a disavowal: in
Gabon
, the Constitutional Court has just announced that it was annulling the appointment of Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo to the position of honorary president. The magistrate had been at the head of the highest court in the country for more than 30 years. She was seen as a pillar of power.
To justify itself, the Court affirms that “
procedural, formal and substantive defects were noted in the deliberation
” which appointed Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo as honorary president. This is what Christian Bignoumba Fernandes, the senior judge of the Constitutional Court, declared on February 2 in a text read on national television. The magistrate explained that this famous deliberation did not appear in “
the minutes of the registry
” of the court. Consequently, the judicial institution “
declares said deliberation null and void
,” concluded the judge.
Read alsoGabon: end of reign for the president of the Constitutional Court
Incidentally, we learn in this speech that the “iron lady” – as she was called – had been discreetly appointed on September 2, 2023. But the information had only leaked last week, particularly in the press, and when in his speech at the start of the judicial year, Dieudonné Aba'A Owono, the successor of Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo, greeted the former judge, specifying her new responsibilities.
The reason for the Court's backpedaling is still unclear. However, we know that political pressure was strong since this appointment. On social networks and within the political class, many accused the transitional authorities of perverting the spirit of last August's coup d'état, of maintaining a pillar of the old regime in functions, certainly honorary, but which confer certain advantages: health coverage, travel expenses, company vehicle, etc. Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo is also seen as a symbol of the old power. It had systematically validated the presidential elections, even the most contested, allowing the Bongos to remain in the presidency.
According to the law, Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo has the right to become honorary president. But to obtain this status, his notoriety must have been recognized by his peers or the president of the transition. Given his sulphurous role, some therefore wondered whether the honorary presidency was deserved.
Read alsoGabon: the return of Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo to the Constitutional Court is unworthy
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