The Congolese government has debunked rumours of a coup attempt against President Denis Sassou-Nguesso.
Thierry Moungalla, the country’s Minister of Information, spoke via a message posted on the X platform on Sunday.
On Sunday, several social media accounts claimed a coup attempt was ongoing in the country while the 79-year-old President is away in the United States to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) beginning this week in New York.
No one yet knows who is behind the coup but local media on Sunday pointed to the commander of the Presidential guard.
But the country’s Minister of Communication and Media, Moungalla, hurriedly debunked it via his X (Twitter) page. “URGENT – Fanciful information suggests serious events that are underway in Brazzaville.
“The Government denies this fake news. We reassure public opinion about the calm that reigns and
invite people to calmly go about their activities,” the minister tweeted.
The country’s president is a former military officer who has been in power since 1997.
In 2015, the constitution was changed to allow the President to run for a third term many observers believed the election process was unfair. In 2021 Sassou-Nguesso was elected for another five-year term.
If confirmed, this will be the third coup in Africa in about three months. The first was in Niger in June and then Gabon last month.
Out of the 486 attempted or successful military coups carried globally since 1950, Africa accounts for the largest number with 214, of which at least 106 have been successful.
The Republic of the Congo is situated astride the Equator in west-central Africa.