Gabonese army officers under the aegis of the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions on Wednesday morning announced on national television why they are taking over power from President Ali Bongo in the country.

The soldiers highlighted serious institutional, political, economic and social crises as factors responsible for the coup that they tagged, ‘necessary’ for the progress of the West African country.

In a nationwide address rendered in French but translated to English by AFP, the junta said, “Our beautiful country, Gabon, has always been a haven of peace.

“Today, the country is going through a serious institutional, political, economic and social crisis.

“We are therefore forced to admit that the organisation of the general elections of August 26, 2023, did not meet the conditions for a transparent, credible and inclusive ballot so much hoped for by the people of Gabon.

“Added to this is irresponsible and unpredictable governance, resulting in a continuing deterioration in social cohesion, with the risk of leading the country into chaos.

“Today, 30 August 2023, we, the defence and security forces, gathered as the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI) on behalf of the people of Gabon and as guarantors of the institutions’ protection — have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime.

“The borders are closed until further notice.

The junta resolved that all of the institutions of the country be dissolved including the Federal Government, the Senate, the National Assembly, the Constitutional Court, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council and the Gabonese Elections Centre.

They therefore called for calm and serenity from the public, the communities of sister countries settled in Gabon, and the Gabonese diaspora.

“We reaffirm our commitment to respecting Gabon’s commitments to the national and international community.

“People of Gabon, we are finally on the road to happiness.

“May God and the spirits of our ancestors bless Gabon. Honour and loyalty to our homeland.”

The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) has cautioned its customers against falling victim to fraudsters, stressing that the planned upgrade of STS prepaid meters in its network will be free of charge, and at no cost to customers.

This clarification was made today in Enugu, by the Head, Corporate Communications, EEDC, Mr. Emeka Ezeh.

According to Ezeh, the warning became necessary because of information received by the company about activities of some unscrupulous elements who are extorting unsuspecting customers in the name of upgrading their meters.

He said that customers should not fall prey to these elements, as no customer will be charged a kobo to have his or her meter upgraded.

“The process of upgrade will be simply by punching into the meter the Key Change Tokens (KCT), which will be provided to the customers alongside the credit token, when they go to recharge their meters.”

What we just did, as a matter of responsibility was to notify our customers of this exercise and appeal to them to ensure that their prepaid meters are upgraded before 24th November 2024.

It will be recalled that earlier in the month, EEDC notified its customers that by 24th November 2024, all Standard Transfer Specification (STS) prepaid meters will cease to accept credit tokens, unless they are upgraded. An exercise which will be affecting all STS compliant prepaid meters across the globe.

Customers of EEDC are advised to ensure that their meters are upgraded before the set date of 24th November 2024, as Meters not upgraded before the date will no longer accept new tokens, but they will still be working till the credit already loaded in it is used up.

It is important to note that credit tokens purchased and not loaded onto the meters before the upgrade will become invalid after the upgrade.

EEDC appeals to its customers to remain calm, as adequate communication will be made on the process and modalities for the upgrade, while reiterating that the upgrade is free of charge and at no cost to customers.

EEDC advised members of the public who need further clarification or enquiries to call: 084 700 100, SMS/Whatsapp: 0815 082 6060 or 0815 082 6061, or send email to: customerservice@enugudisco.com

*I escaped with only these clothes on me,’ says survivor

Three people have been declared dead after a two-storey building collapsed in the early hours of Thursday in Garki village, Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Abuja.

According to government officials undertaking rescue operations at the venue, the building came crashing down on unsuspecting residents shortly after midnight while it was raining non-stop, killing two on the spot while one later died in the hospital.

FCT Minister who arrived at the place to assess the situation, ordered the immediate arrest of the owners of the property and an investigation into the remote and immediate causes of the building collapse.

Wike who warned that enough is enough of individuals building without approved building plan and use of substandard materials, said “We will identify and arrest the owners of the building.”

The minister assured that the government will take care of the hospital bill and treatment of those rescued and are receiving treatment for various degrees of injuries in hospitals.

A resident of the collapsed building, Gift Eze, who survived the accident, said they escaped the accident with only the clothes on their bodies. She called on the government to provide immediate relief and support for them.

“I escaped with only these clothes on me, the house, property, everything is gone, please we need immediate help. Where do we sleep tonight and where do we live?

Senator Ireti Kingibe, representing the FACT, who arrived at the venue shortly after the departure of the FCT minister, decried the spare of building collapse in the FCT and the attendant loss of lives and property.

She tasked regulatory bodies to conduct periodic checks on buildings across the FCT to avoid a repeat of the incident.

She said although the area is a local Gbagyi setting, it is important to follow standards when setting up any building structure to avoid building collapse.

“Everyone intending to build should get proper approval before doing so. This is an old building but the agencies should have a process where they go regularly to assess old buildings like this and while they do that, we the public should comply.”

Officials of the FCT Development Control, FCT FERMA, and the Standard Organisation of Nigeria, (SON), among others, all agreed that the about 30-year-old building was already distressed and therefore no longer fit for people to live in.

District Head, Garki, Stephen Yakubu, explained that the owner of the building had already given the occupants quit notice for a while now because the building had already depreciated and was almost collapsing but some of the occupants still stayed back for lack of where to immediately move to and were unfortunately caught up in the disaster.

He said “Based on the information we were told, the owner had already given them quite notice when he realised that the building was depreciating and it was almost collapsing but for over two months now, they have refused to leave perhaps the reason could be that they didn’t have accommodation anywhere.

“We are deeply saddened over the loss of lives there. Nobody is happy because losing a life, even if it is a baby, is something that is quite worrisome. We are working with the authorities to prevent these from happening again,” he said.