GABON: WORRIES PERSIST OVER BONGO,S HEALTH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 LIBREVILLE 000022

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/15/2019
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL GB
SUBJECT: GABON: WORRIES PERSIST OVER BONGO,S HEALTH

REF: 08 LIBREVILLE 0545

Classified By: DCM Nathan Holt for reasons 1.4(b) and (d).

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Summary
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1. (C) Embassy visitors calling on a mid-ranking official at
Gabon's presidential palace January 14 caught a rare glimpse
of an extremely frail President El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba
being lifted into his presidential Rolls Royce en route to a
ceremonial opening of the latest session of the Gabonese
constitutional court. Once at the ceremony, Bongo walked
unassisted for a short distance, listened to the proceedings,
and otherwise maintained the distance and disengagement that
are characteristic for him on such occasions. The 73
year-old Bongo is the world's longest serving head of state,
and his health is a national obsession. Though he appears to
retain mental acuity, he has grown noticeably weaker, thinner
and less mobile. He and his handlers are careful to shield
the public from scenes like the one we witnessed at the
palace. End Summary.

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Surprising Scene
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2. (C) Embassy poloff and visiting AF/C desk officer
unexpectedly found themselves a few yards away from President
Bongo in the courtyard of the presidential palace January 14
as Bongo departed for the latest in a series of public
ceremonies that mark the new year in Gabon. The officers
were there to meet another official. Bongo was physically
lifted by two aides, one supporting his legs and the other
his torso, and placed into the backseat of the presidential
Rolls Royce. Once inside the vehicle, aides physically
repositioned the president to his accustomed location in the
backseat.


3. (C) Bongo arrived a short while later to preside at the
opening of the latest session of the Constitutional Court,
where the Ambassador observed him walk deliberately but
unaided to his seat. He then stood unassisted for the
national anthem and sat for the brief remarks by the head of
the court. Characteristically, Bongo did not mix with guests
or speak extemporaneously.

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National Obsession,
But No Public Discussion
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4. (C) Bongo collapsed and lost consciousness as a result of
an unspecified medical condition in early November 2008, a
fact unreported in Gabon (reftel). Public discussion of the
president's health is strictly taboo, and the presidency
releases no public information on the subject.


5. (C) It is clear from both public and private encounters
that Bongo retains most or all of his mental acuity.
However, there are persistent reports of the president's
"fatigue" and rumors that he has suffered additional,
unspecified medical setbacks. He has apparently lost weight
and speaks more often from a seated position in his public
appearances. And based on what we witnessed at the
presidential palace, Bongo's physical mobility appears to
have deteriorated--perhaps significantly--in the last several
weeks.


6. (C) Military and protocol aides in Bongo's immediate
physical vicinity strike us as unusually watchful,
particularly when the president is moving or speaking. We
have recently observed one aide who stays close to the
president with what appears to be a medium-sized black duffle
bag, perhaps containing medical equipment. In any case,
Bongo's son and potential successor Defense Minister Ali
Bongo is said to have ordered a shakeup in arrangements for
monitoring the president's health (and responding to any
crisis) in the wake of the president's collapse last November.


7. (C) President Bongo does not smoke, drinks alcohol in
great moderation, and is said to maintain a lifelong custom
of healthy eating. Despite his apparent ill-health, he
maintains a vigorous schedule of public appearances,
diplomatic engagement and international travel--including
frequent travel to visit his ailing wife in Morocco, whose
apparently debilitating medical condition is also shrouded in
secrecy.

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Comment
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8. (C) Bongo's health is a central political preoccupation
in Gabon, with sub rosa jockeying already underway by family
members and courtiers who would like to take his place. The
president's death would be a worrisome event, but we are
equally concerned by the potentially negative consequences of
a prolonged decline in his health and ability to govern.
Aside from the growing power of his son the defense minister,
there is little evidence that Bongo is making plans to deal
with the inevitable consequences of his own mortality. End
Comment.
REDDICK