Sylvestre Ratanga




Sylvestre Augustin Ratanga (born 1945?[1]) is a Gabonese politician and diplomat. He served as Gabon's Ambassador to Germany and was later the Secretary-General of the Gabonese Union for Democracy and Development (UGDD), an opposition party. Abandoning the UGDD, he then served in the government as Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation from January 2009 to October 2009, and he has been Chairman of the Board of the Gabonese Refining Company (Société gabonaise de raffinage, SOGARA) since October 2009.



Political career


Ratanga was Director for International Organizations and Multilateral Cooperation Organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from March 1976 to February 1978.[2] Subsequently he was Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,[3] and later he was Gabon's Ambassador to Germany. Shortly after Zacharie Myboto founded the UGDD, Ratanga joined the new party as its Vice-President in June 2005.[1] He later became the UGDD's Permanent Secretary-General and additionally served as its National Secretary for Foreign Relations.[4] At the time of the November 2005 presidential election, he was the coordinator of Myboto's campaign.[5]


Ratanga briefly went on hunger strike in December 2005 to protest his inability to obtain a passport from the government, which would enable him to visit his family living abroad. The Directorate-General of Emigration and Immigration promptly issued him an ordinary passport, and although he still did not receive a diplomatic passport from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the issuing of an ordinary passport was sufficient for him to end his hunger strike.[6]


President Omar Bongo appointed Ratanga, who was still serving as the Secretary-General of the UGDD, to the government as Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation on 14 January 2009. Ratanga accepted the post, although the UGDD had decided not to participate in the government. The UGDD immediately expelled Ratanga from the party, along with Paul Boundoukou-Latha, another UGDD member who had taken a lesser post in the government.[7] Deriding the appointments, the UGDD described Ratanga's portfolio as "a hot potato that he was passed in the hope that it burns [his] fingers".[8]


Ratanga's tasks as Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation included overseeing the construction of an airport in Libreville, a reform of legal regulations pertaining to the sector, and the improvement of old airports and weather stations. Speaking at a ceremony for the installation of new aviation and transport officials on 6 February 2009, Ratanga stressed the importance of innovation and performance.[9]


Omar Bongo died in June 2009 and his son Ali Bongo took office as President in October 2009, after winning a disputed presidential election. As President, Ali Bongo dismissed Ratanga from the government on 17 October[10] and then appointed him as Chairman of the Board of SOGARA on 19 October 2009.[11][12] That move was part of a major reshuffling of the state administration. At SOGARA, he and Director-General Reteno Ndiaye were faced with the task of improving the company's very difficult financial situation. Ratanga and Ndiaye met with Julien Nkoghe Bekale, the Minister of Oil, on 29 October 2009 to discuss their plan for repairing SOGARA's finances.[11]



References





  1. ^ ab "Sylvestre Ratangana", La Lettre du Continent number 477, Africa Intelligence, 8 September 2005 (in French).


  2. ^ Les Élites africaines (1979), Édiafric, page 350 (in French).


  3. ^ "Summary of world broadcasts", BBC, 1982.


  4. ^ "Composition du Secrétariat Permanent (provisoire) de l’UGDD", UGDD website (in French).


  5. ^ "Omar Bongo renouvelle son mandat", la-croix.com, 23 November 2005 (in French).


  6. ^ ""Affaire Ratanga": L'ambassadeur retraité a reçu un passeport ordinaire jeudi", L'Union, 28 December 2005 (in French).


  7. ^ "Gabon : L’UGDD exclut deux de ses militants cooptés contre son avis dans le nouveau gouvernement", Infosplusgabon, 15 January 2009 (in French).


  8. ^ "Remaniement du Gouvernement : à quand le changement ?", UGDD website, 16 January 2009 (in French).


  9. ^ "Le ministre Sylvestre Ratanga déterminé à donner un souffle nouveau", InfosPlus Gabon, 10 February 2009 (in French).


  10. ^ "Gabon: Liste complète du nouveau gouvernement gabonais", Gabonews, 17 October 2009 (in French).


  11. ^ ab "Gabon : Un plan d’urgence pour la SOGARA", Gaboneco, 30 October 2009 (in French).


  12. ^ "Gabun: Ex-Minister Ratanga wechselt zu Erdölgesellschaft", Africa-live.de, 20 October 2009 (in German).









-

這個網誌中的熱門文章

12.7 cm/40 Type 89 naval gun

圖片
12.7 cm/40 Type 89 naval gun Type 89 gun mounted on Chitose Type Naval gun anti-aircraft gun Place of origin Japan Service history In service 1932–45 Used by Imperial Japanese Navy Wars World War II Production history Designed 1928–32 Produced 1932–45 No.  built ~1500 Variants Type 88 Specifications Mass 3,100 kilograms (6,834 lb) Barrel length 5,080 millimeters (16 ft 8 in) (bore length) Shell Fixed Shell weight 20.9–23.45 kilograms (46.1–51.7 lb) Caliber 12.7-centimeter (5.0 in) Breech horizontal breech block Elevation -8° to +90° [1] Rate of fire 8-14 rounds per minute Muzzle velocity 720–725 meters per second (2,360–2,380 ft/s) Maximum firing range 9,440 meters (30,970 ft) at 90° (AA ceiling) 14,800 meters (48,600 ft) at 45° The 12.7 cm/40 Type 89 naval gun was a Japanese anti-aircraft (AA) gun introduced before World War II. It was the Imperial Japanese Navy's standard heavy AA...
閱讀完整內容

Rikitea

圖片
Town in French Polynesia, France Rikitea Town Rikitea Location in French Polynesia Coordinates: 23°7′13″S 134°58′9″W  /  23.12028°S 134.96917°W  / -23.12028; -134.96917 Coordinates: 23°7′13″S 134°58′9″W  /  23.12028°S 134.96917°W  / -23.12028; -134.96917 Country   France Overseas collectivity   French Polynesia Territory Gambier Islands Island Mangareva Rikitea is a small town on Mangareva, which is part of the Gambier Islands in French Polynesia. A majority of the islanders live in Rikitea. [1] [2] The island was a protectorate of France in 1871 and was annexed in 1881. [3] Contents 1 History 2 Geography 3 Economy 4 Landmarks 5 Transportation 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 External links History The town's history dates to the era when the island was first settled with people from the Marquesas Islands in 1100 AD. Captain James Wilson of the London Missionary Society arrived in 1797 on Du...
閱讀完整內容

University of Vienna

圖片
"Vienna University" redirects here. For Vienna University of Economics and Business, see Vienna University of Economics and Business. University of Vienna Universität Wien Type Public Established 1365 Budget € 544 million [1] Rector Heinz Engl Academic staff 6,765 Administrative staff 3,106 Students 94,000 [2] Postgraduates 16,490 Doctoral students 8,945 Location Main building, Vienna , Austria 48°12′47″N 16°21′35″E  /  48.21306°N 16.35972°E  / 48.21306; 16.35972 Coordinates: 48°12′47″N 16°21′35″E  /  48.21306°N 16.35972°E  / 48.21306; 16.35972 Campus Urban Colors Blue and White           Affiliations Campus Europae, EUA, UNICA Website www.univie.ac.at/en Data as of 2016 [update] The University of Vienna (German: Universität Wien ) is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is one of the oldest universities in the Ge...
閱讀完整內容