A new Gabonese constitution proposed by the ruling junta calls for a national holiday to celebrate the downfall of the country’s Bongo dynasty, media reported Tuesday.

The transitional government published the text on Monday after it was passed by the Council of Ministers last week. A referendum on the constitution is to be held on November 16.

The draft orders a national liberation day celebrating the end of 55 years of rule by the family of former president Ali Bongo Ondimba, on August 30 last year.

The text also includes abolishing the post of prime minister and imposing a seven-year presidential term, renewable once.

An hour after the announcement of Bongo’s election to a third term as president on August 30 last year, a military junta led by General Brice Oligui Nguema forced him out and denounced what they said was a rigged election.

Oligui has promised to restore civilian rule in the oil-rich West African nation, and has not hidden his intention to run in a presidential election slated for August 2025.

“The proposed constitution, the fruit of your contributions during national consultations, is now available. I invite you to examine it carefully, to fully understand its stakes and to take the time to think with complete peace of mind,” the transitional president wrote on X.

The amendments include a cap on two successive presidential mandates, election by direct universal suffrage and the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Candidates for head of state would need to have at least one Gabonese-born parent, hold no other nationality and be married to a Gabonese national.

The conditions reinforce “the distinction between native Gabonese and others, excluding naturalised Gabonese and dual nationals”, according to the Gabon Review newspaper.

Credit: Vanguard Nigeria