By Gary Raynaldo   DIPLOMATIC TIMES 

Gabonese President Ali Bongo is seriously ill but on the mend, his spokesman says, ending weeks of official silence on his condition, according to the BBC.       Bongo is currently being treated in Saudi Arabia. According to  media reports the  Gabon leader has been hospitalized in King Faisal hospital in Riyadh due to “exhaustion”.  President Bongo, 59, fell ill on October 24 during a visit to Riyadh to attend an economic forum.  Political speculation and concerns for the economy have gone into overdrive in Gabon as questions grow over the fate of President Ali Bongo who was hospitalised in Saudi Arabia two weeks ago, AFP reported.  According to a non-Gabonese source close to Bongo, the president “suffered a stroke.”    “It’s no longer life-threatening, and he is no longer under artificial respiration,” the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity, adding that President Bongo was still in Riyadh, according to AFP.  The presidency did not address the media reports of stroke, but said Bongo had suffered “bleeding which required medical care.”  Official statement said Bongo was suffering from fatigue due to his heavy local and international work schedules.The statement added that he was recuperating and remained in the King Faisal hospital over advise of doctors that he takes a medical leave.

Bongo served as foreign and defence minister during his father’s rule, and after his death was elected head of state in August 2009. He was narrowly re-elected in 2016 following a presidential poll marred by deadly violence and allegations of fraud, AFP  reported. 

Gabon suspends Cameroon TV over Ali Bongo death report

 Gabon’s communications watchdog, the High Authority of Communication, HAC,  suspended a privately-run Cameroonian channel for reporting the fake death of President Ali Bongo Ondimba,  africanews.com reported. The Vision 4 channel reported that Bongo had died in a Saudi Arabia hospital whiles on admission. The suspension is to last six months.