Curfew for Gabon As President Declared Polls Winner

Supporters of Albert Ondo Ossa, main rival to incumbent Ali Bongo Ondimba in Gabon's presidential election, urged the head of state to concede defeat and organise a handover, AFP reports. The Alternance 23 opposition platform seeks to deny 64-year-old Bongo, part of a family that has ruled for 55 years, a third term.

Saturday saw the authorities cut internet access and impose a nighttime curfew as voting drew to a close. That prompted opposition supporters and Ondo Ossa, an economics professor chosen as a joint candidate by Alternance 23, to call the election a fraud and demand the challenger be declared the winner.

Gabonese law forbids any publication of partial results pending the final result which only the Centre Gabonais des Elections (CGE) is allowed by law to publish. The CGE has several times refused to indicate to AFP how the count is progressing or when the release of official results may be expected.