Armengol Ondo Nguema (born 3 February 1970) is the younger brother of Equatoguinean President Teodoro Obiang, [1] as well as the head of the president's Israeli-trained [1] security detail.
He was, until recently, the head of national security. He may have been forced to retire from this position due to his business links to Nick du Toit, [2] who was a leading figure in an abortive coup d'etat in 2004. Nguema shares ownership of Triple Options, a security company with du Toit. The president's son and likely heir, Teodorín Nguema Obiang, reportedly attacked his uncle after discovering the link. Armengol also owns vast properties in Virginia. He is bitterly opposed to the succession of his nephew to the presidency, and presents himself as a stalking horse contender. He has been suspected to be heavily involved in the many human rights abuses that occur in Equatorial Guinea, [3] [4]
Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa, with an area of 28,000 square kilometres (11,000 sq mi). Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location near both the Equator and in the African region of Guinea. As of 2024, the country had a population of 1,795,834, over 85% of whom are members of the Fang people, the country's dominant ethnic group. The Bubi people, indigenous to Bioko, are the second largest group at approximately 6.5% of the population.
The politics of Equatorial Guinea take place in a framework of a presidential republic, whereby the President is both the head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Chamber of People's Representatives
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo is an Equatoguinean politician, dictator, and former military officer who has served as the 2nd President of Equatorial Guinea since 1982 and as well as the President of the Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea since the party's foundation in 1987. Previously, he was the Chairman of the Supreme Military Council from 1979 to 1982. As of 2024, he is the second-longest consecutively serving current non-royal national leader in the world.
Francisco Macías Nguema, often referred to as Macías Nguema or simply Macías, was an Equatoguinean politician who served as the first president of Equatorial Guinea from the country's independence in 1968, until his overthrow in 1979. He is widely remembered as one of the most brutal dictators in history. As president, he exhibited bizarre and erratic behavior; many of his contemporaries believed he was insane.
Nguema may refer to two different post-colonial leaders of Equatorial Guinea:
Simon Francis Mann is a British mercenary and former officer in the SAS. He trained to be an officer at Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Scots Guards. He later became a member of the SAS. On leaving the military, he co-founded Sandline International with fellow ex-Scots Guards Colonel Tim Spicer in 1996. Sandline operated mostly in Angola and Sierra Leone, but a contract with the government of Papua New Guinea attracted a significant amount of negative publicity in what became known as the Sandline affair.
Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue is an Equatoguinean politician who has served as the first vice president of Equatorial Guinea since 22 June 2016. He is a son of Teodoro Obiang, president of Equatorial Guinea, by his first wife, Constancia Mangue.
Servaas Nicolaas "Nick" du Toit is a former South African arms dealer, former mercenary and former colonel of 32 Battalion and the 5th Reconnaissance Commando. He was implicated in the plot to overthrow Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea.
Severo Matías Moto Nsá, known as Severo Moto, is the most notable opposition politician in Equatorial Guinea, and leader of the Progress Party of Equatorial Guinea. He lives in Spain where he has established a government in exile, to the irritation of President Teodoro Obiang Nguema.
Cristino Seriche Bioko was an Equatoguinean soldier and politician who was the Prime Minister of Equatorial Guinea from 15 August 1982 to 4 March 1992. He previously served as Vice President under Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo for almost one year, from December 1981 to until the position was abolished in October 1982 according to the constitutional referendum, at which point he became president.
Black Beach, located on the island of Bioko, in the capital city of Malabo in Equatorial Guinea, is one of Africa's most notorious prisons.
The 2004 Equatorial Guinea coup d'état attempt, also known as the Wonga Coup, failed to replace President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo with exiled opposition politician Severo Moto. Mercenaries organised by mainly British financiers were arrested in Zimbabwe on 7 March 2004 before they could carry out the plot. Prosecutors alleged that Moto was to be installed as the new president in return for preferential oil rights to corporations affiliated with those involved in the coup. The incident received international media attention after the reported involvement of Sir Mark Thatcher in funding the coup, for which he was convicted and fined in South Africa.
James Martin Brabazon, is a British documentary filmmaker, journalist, and author.
Equatorial Guinea–North Korea relations refers to the current and historical relationship between Equatorial Guinea and North Korea. While Equatorial Guinea has no representation in North Korea, it is one of few African states to have a North Korean embassy, located in the capital of Malabo.
The 1979 Equatorial Guinea coup d'état happened on August 3, 1979, when President Francisco Macías Nguema's nephew, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, overthrew him in a bloody coup. Fighting between loyalists and rebels continued until Macías Nguema was captured fleeing for Cameroon on August 18. He was sentenced to death for the crime of genocide against the Bubi people and other crimes committed. Macías Nguema was executed by firing squad on September 29, 1979. Teodoro has remained leader since then, initially as chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council and Supreme Military Council and subsequently as president.
Political corruption in Equatorial Guinea is high by world standards and considered among the worst of any country on earth. It has been described as "an almost perfect kleptocracy" in which the scale of systemic corruption and the rulers' indifference towards the people's welfare place it at the bottom of every major governance indicator or ranking, below nations with similar per capita GDPs.
Equatorial Guinea–Spain relations are the diplomatic relations between Equatorial Guinea and Spain. Both nations are members of the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language, Organization of Ibero-American States and the United Nations.
The Supreme Military Council — initially called the Military Revolutionary Council — was the ruling military junta and the de facto government of Equatorial Guinea between the 1979 coup d'état and the 1982 constitutional referendum.
The following lists events that happened during 1979 in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.
Salvador Ondo Nkumu is an Equatoguinean politician and former judge who has served as the country's Minister of Justice since 2018. He had previously served as Minister of Justice from 2008 to 2011.