Gabon Democracy, in Question, Political History

Gabon Democracy in question, Political History. Find out more about this African tiny rich country, the political situation, corruption and security status, ritual killing and more. The Book on Gabon has it all. Formerly part of French West Africa, Gabon was granted internal autonomy in 1958 and became fully independent on 17 August 1960. Leon M'Ba, president of the new republic, established Gabon as a one-party state by inviting the opposition to join the government. There was a coup in 1964, but M'Ba was restored by French troops. Following his death in November 1967, M'Ba was succeeded by his vice-president, Albert Bernard (later Omar) Bongo. Bongo organized a new ruling party, the Parti Democratique Gabonais (PDG), which became the sole legal party in 1968. Gabon enjoyed relative stability in the 1970s and joined the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) after the discovery of oil deposits