An overwhelming majority of Gabonese have voted in favor of a new constitution, military authorities say, a move that marks a new phase for the country after last year’s coup.
According to the country’s preliminary results, 92% of voters supported the new constitution.
The outcome paves the way for a transition to civilian rule, although critics say it is aimed at keeping coup leader Brice Oligui Nguema in power.
Nguema has yet to say openly whether he will contest the elections.
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According to the Commission for the Transition and Recovery of Institutions (CTRI), voter turnout was estimated at 54%. No serious incidents were reported during Saturday’s vote.
The final results will be announced by the Constitutional Court.
As he voted, the military leader called the referendum a “big step forward,” adding that Gabonese would “vote in a transparent manner.”
Ahead of the vote, transitional authorities described it as a crucial step toward returning to constitutional order in the oil-rich country.
The referendum paves the way for elections tentatively scheduled for August next year – two years after Nguema took power to overthrow President Ali Bongo Odimba, whose family had ruled the country for decades.
The draft constitution establishes a seven-year term, renewable once, replacing a five-year term that had no limits and allowed for dynastic rule.
It also bans members of a president’s family from running for the country’s top job and also requires candidates to be exclusively Gabonese and have a Gabonese spouse.
This effectively blocks the deposed leader, who is married to a French woman.
It is seen as an attempt to end the family succession phenomenon created by the Bongo family, which maintained a 55-year dynasty.
Bongo had ruled for fourteen years before being deposed. He took office after the death of his father, who had been president for 41 years.
The new law abolishes the position of prime minister and introduces two vice-president roles.
While some have welcomed the bill, others have warned that it could concentrate too much power in the presidency.
Despite Gabon’s oil wealth and vast forests, a third of Gabon’s 2.4 million residents live below the poverty line, according to the UN.
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