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- Equatorial Guinea has demanded the lifting of “unilateral and illegal” sanctions imposed for corruption by the United Kingdom against the son of the president of this Central African country
- This request is contained in the statement released Saturday by the Equatorial Guinean authorities
- Equatorial Guinea has been ruled for more than 41 years by 79-year-old Teodoro Obiang Nguema, and Teodorin, who has been omnipresent on the public scene for more than a year
Equatorial Guinea has demanded the lifting of “unilateral and illegal” sanctions imposed for corruption by the United Kingdom against the son of the president of this Central African country. This request is contained in the statement released Saturday by the Equatorial Guinean authorities.
Teodorin Obiang Mangue, vice-president of Equatorial Guinea and son of the president, was sanctioned recently by London for the “misappropriation of public funds” and leading a lavish life at the expense of people’s money. He , it is alleged, spent more than US$500 million on luxury homes around the world, a private jet, cars, and collectibles related to the singer Michael Jackson.
The sanctions, which include an asset freeze and ban on entry to the UK, were taken as part of anti-corruption sanctions against 22 individuals from six different countries, including Russia. The Equatorial Guinean authorities say that sanctions were imposed on legally unfounded grounds. They demand that sanctions may be lifted as soon as possible. However, the opposition parties’ leaders welcomed the sanctions and maintained that most of the country’s 1.4 million people live without access to “clean water and decent schools, when authorities are splashing wealth. .
Equatorial Guinea has been ruled for more than 41 years by 79-year-old Teodoro Obiang Nguema, and Teodorin, who has been omnipresent on the public scene for more than a year. He is being projected more and more openly as his “successor. This country with an economy seriously at half-mast due to the fall in hydrocarbon prices since 2014, on which it is 90% dependent, has devoted 95 billion CFA francs to Defense (140 million Euros) in its 2020 budget against 59 billion to Education (90 million Euros).
In France, Teodorin Obiang was sentenced on appeal on February 10, 2020 to three years in prison with a suspended sentence, 30 million euros in fines and confiscation of his assets in France. A final ruling by the Court of Cassation is expected on July 28.
