Baltasar Ebang Engonga: Equatorial Guinea official sacked over leaked sex videos

Equatorial Guinean President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has fired one of the country's senior officials, Baltasar Ebang Engonga, following the emergence of hundreds of explicit videos showing him in intimate encounters with various women, including the wives of high-ranking officials.

Some footage, reportedly filmed within his finance ministry office, went viral, sparking significant public backlash on social media.

Subsequently, a presidential decree removed Ebang Engonga, head of the National Financial Investigation Agency and relative of President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, from his role. The scandal broke while he was detained at Black Beach prison in Malabo, facing separate accusations of public fund misappropriation.

Efforts by telecommunications authorities in Equatorial Guinea to curb the video’s spread reportedly included directives to internet providers and social media platforms to limit access. However, the content quickly went global, inspiring parodies, music tributes, and even parliamentary discussions in Kenya, highlighting the challenges of controlling digital information in the modern era.

Speaking anonymously on national television, one of the women involved expressed distress, stating she had consented to recording under the belief it would be erased immediately, and asked why the video was retained and shared.

Known as Bello due to his looks, Ebang Engonga comes from an influential lineage; his father, Baltasar Engonga Edjo, heads the Central African Economic and Monetary Community Commission. Chief Prosecutor Anatolio Nzang Nguema indicated that more charges could be filed against him, including potential public health violations if tests confirm transmission risks of sexually transmitted infections.

This incident marks a significant turning point for Equatorial Guinea, a nation under President Obiang’s strict governance since 1979, and has drawn international attention, placing scrutiny on the nation's political elite.

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