According to the coup's leader, Former Gabonese President Ali Bongo, deposed in a coup, is free to leave the nation and travel abroad.

"He has freedom of movement... and can travel abroad if he wishes," said General Brice Oligui Nguema in a statement on national television.

PHOTO | COURTESY General Brice Oligui

Bongo, who had been in power for 14 years, has been under house arrest since the August 30 military coup, which took place without bloodshed less than an hour after his party declared his re-election in a ballot deemed illegitimate by the putschists.

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PHOTO | COURTESY General Brice Oligui and wife

"Given his health, former President of the Republic Ali Bongo Ondimba is free to move." "He can travel abroad for medical checks if he wishes," Colonel Ulrich Manfoumbi Manfoumbi said, reading from a press release signed by Oligui, who took his oath as interim president on Monday.

PHOTO | COURTESY Ali Bongo

Bongo sustained a major stroke in October 2018, leaving him physically disabled and unable to move his right leg or arm. He had claimed that he was being kept away from his family.

Ali Bongo's family has been ruling Gabon for over 50 years. After a process beset by delays, he had secured 64.27 percent of the vote compared with 30.77 percent for his main challenger, Albert Ondo Ossa.