Angola has asked the President-in-Office of ECCAS and President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, to intervene in the case of the invasion of the residence of the organization’s president in Gabon.
A press release from the Angolan Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that the meeting between Minister Téte António and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo took place on Saturday January 20 in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.
At the meeting, the Angolan minister appealed to Obiang to “intercede with the Gabonese authorities about what had happened, calling on the authorities of that country to observe the principles of protecting and safeguarding the security and physical integrity of diplomatic entities accredited in that country, as set out in the different legal diplomas of international law, as well as continental, regional, and sub-regional organizations,” the note reads.
Angola announced on Saturday that the home of the president of the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC), Gilberto Veríssimo, of Angolan nationality, was robbed in Libreville and asked Gabon for explanations following this diplomatic incident.
“Ambassador Gilberto da Piedade Veríssimo had his residence invaded by armed men in uniform, of Gabonese nationality, on the morning of Wednesday, January 17, who psychologically harassed him while they searched the compartments of his residence,” continues the Angolan Foreign Ministry.
The meeting between Téte António and Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo lasted approximately 30 minutes and “served as an opportunity for the head of Angolan diplomacy to express his deep indignation at the attack on the safety and physical integrity of Angolan ambassador Gilberto da Piedade Veríssimo, who is carrying out his legitimate duties as president of CEEAC, based in Libreville, Republic of Gabon”, the statement said.
Angola recalled the final communiqué of the Fifth Extraordinary Session of the Summit of Heads of State and Government of ECCAS, within the framework of the Council for Peace and Security in Africa, issued in December 2023 in Djibloho, Equatorial Guinea, which “expressly urged the Government of the Gabonese Republic to continue to guarantee security conditions” for the president, members, and all the staff of the Commission.