According to Wikileaks, Omar Bongo had misappropriated funds for French parties

Omar Bongo, in 2006, with Jacques Chirac. / PATRICK KOVARIKSelon U.S. diplomatic notes released by Wikileaks Wednesday, December 29, visible on the website of Spanish newspaper El Pais, nearly 30 million allegedly embezzled from the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) to his advantage by The late President Omar Bongo of Gabon.

A portion of these funds have also benefited the French political parties. This information was given four days after the death of Mr. Bongo, in June 2009 an officer of the BEAC to a diplomat of the American Embassy in Cameroon, the newspaper said. The same source, "the leaders of Gabon used the embezzled funds for personal enrichment, and following the instructions of Bongo, handed some money to French political parties." The money would have benefited "from both sides, but especially on the right, in particular to Chirac but Sarkozy." Malpractice even broader "Depending on the cable from July 2009, the Governor of the BEAC, the Gabonese Andzembe Philip, had secretly placed 500 million euros in a high-risk investment of the French bank Societe Generale.

After this offering unauthorized was made public, an audit was conducted and BEAC "revealed wrongdoing even broader and bolder, related to the hierarchy of official Gabon," said the official cause of this information. "The internal investigation showed that 36 million (approximately EUR 28 million) were diverted via checks to officials of Gabon," he said.

INVESTIGATION The clan in power in Gabon, "which the late President Omar Bongo and his son Ali, Minister of Defense and presidential candidate (since elected to head the country), has benefited from the misappropriation of funds," says the document. "The embassy is unable to verify the veracity of the accusation that French politicians have benefited from the misappropriation of funds" simply enter the cable, signed by U.S.

Ambassador to Cameroon the time, Janet Garvey. An investigation is under way in France on property in France three African presidents and their families, including Omar Bongo, following a complaint by Transparency International, an NGO dedicated to the fight against corruption.

• French court orders probe into African presidents (09/11/2010)
• French court orders probe into African presidents (09/11/2010)
• Three African leaders face fraud inquiry in France (09/11/2010)
• French inquiry for Africa leaders (09/11/2010)
• Ghana's New Oil Wealth May Trigger Borrowing Spree (15/12/2010)

Wikileaks (homepage)  Wikileaks (wikipedia)  Omar Bongo (wikipedia)