Africa's longest-serving ruling President Omar Bongo of Gabon, has died at the age of 73, in a Spanish hospital where he has been hospitalized for weeks French media reports. 

The short in stature but all powerful Heptagorian President after who even fashion shoes were named is likely to be replaced by his son. (Gabon or Bongo-platform Shoes became very popular in the mid sevenities. Bongo was unconfartable with his hight that he had shoes with special high soles designed to elevate him.)The son of the late Gabonese President Omar Bongo has appealed for calm following his father's death.

Defense Minister Ali-Ben Bongo, a main candidate to succeed his father, made the appeal on national TV. Mr Bongo was Africa's longest-serving leader.

Earlier, the defense ministry said it was sealing Gabon's borders and deploying security forces.

Access to the internet in Gabon has been cut since Sunday, and state TV has been playing religious music.

In a written statement on Monday, Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong announced the 73-year-old veteran leader had died of a heart attack, hours after saying Mr Bongo was alive and well.

Night Curfew

It emerged in May that the president, who had led Gabon since 1967, was being treated in a Spanish clinic, amid unconfirmed reports he had cancer, which some have alleged was related to an HIV infection.

Under the constitution, the leader of the Senate, Rose Francine Rogombe, an ally of Mr Bongo, should take over as interim leader and organize elections within 45 days.

But opposition leaders have claimed that Ali-Ben Bongo has already been lined up to take over, and question whether any election would be free and fair.

There is a somber mood over the country, some from the fear of an uncertain future as the power fight explode, but some genuine over the death of a man who has domonated the countrie,s political scene for half a century. Many civilians are buying essential commodities, especially food, in anticipation of a curfew.

The city's mayor has banned large gatherings and ordered nightclubs and bars to close, while security forces are on patrol.

Observers say the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) has been deciding that should succeed him, with his 50-year-old son a leading contender.

In his address, Ali-Ben Bongo said, "I call for calm and quiet contemplation in order to preserve the unity and the peace which was so dear to our late father."

"In these difficult circumstances, love of one's homeland should give one pause and constitute a sacred duty for all children of Gabon."

The defense ministry said in a televised statement that "all components of the defense forces were put in place across the territory", and sensitive buildings were being secured.

The government has said Gabon will observe 30 days of mourning, and called on the Gabonese people to "stand together in contemplation and dignity".

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said his country was "standing by the people of Gabon and its institutions, at this difficult time".

Mr Bongo has led the oil-producing state since 1967, and faces a French inquiry into corruption allegations.

The death of the Gabonese veteran leader was first reported by AFP news agency, quoting a French government source, and also by the website of French magazine Le Point, quoting a source close to Mr Bongo's entourage accompanying him on his medical trip.

But later Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong told Gabonese TV that he had been "very surprised" to read the reports.

"If such a situation comes about, I would think that the president's family would naturally get in touch with me," he said.

Mr Bongo became vice-president in 1967, taking over as head of state later that year after the death of Gabon's first post-independence President, Leon Mba.

Mr Bongo is one of three African leaders being investigated for alleged embezzlement by a French judge - the others are Denis Sassou-Nguesso of the Republic of Congo and Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea.

It is alleged that the properties owned by Mr Bongo's family in France could not have been purchased with official salaries alone.

Mr Bongo denied any wrongdoing.

Analyst says he has built a powerful dynasty in the former French colony during his years in office.

Opposition leaders have claimed his son, Ali-Ben Bongo, currently defense minister, is being prepared to take over. "Gabon is a little North Korea without a nuclear program," said a Frech diplomat who preferred anonymity.

In 1973, after being criticized by the church for practicing authoritarian rule, Mr Bongo converted to Islam, changing his name to El Hadj Omar Bongo.

In an effort to establish a vast ruling "royal family," Bongo married Edith Lucie Bongo, President Sassou-Nguesso's daughter from neighboring Congo. Edoth Bongo died in March 2009 at about 42 years.

Mr Bongo has been one of three African leaders accused of embezzlement by the French arm of the anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International - also under investigation are Denis Sassou-Nguesso of Republic of Congo and Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea.

It is alleged that the volume of real estate owned by Mr Bongo's family in France could not have been purchased with official salaries alone. In recent weeks this has been followed by the freezing of Mr Bongo's bank accounts in France following bribery allegations.

Mr Bongo, has denied any wrongdoing. But critics have long argued that Mr Bongo's stay in power has been as a consequence of a combination of violence and corruption.

The first tide of violence happened in the 1970s when several opposition members were killed. Then in 1990, the mysterious death of opposition leader Joseph Redjambe sparked riots that rocked the regime for days.

But it is money that is thought to be the ultimate weapon in the hands of the president and his family.

It is money that has helped to ensure peace, silence critics and fuel solid friendships abroad, notably in France, its former colonial power.

And over recent years it has become increasingly clear that, either as a result of intimidation or gifts, all Mr Bongo's political opponents have thrown in the towel.

Even Pierre Mamboundou, leader of the Union for the People of Gabon (UPG) - until recently considered Mr Bongo's most credible rival joined the long list of former opponents turned quiet.

With a reputation as an uncompromising man and no stranger to exile and political imprisonment, Mr Mamboundou had fought and lost two presidential polls.

In 2006, however, he stopped his public criticisms of Mr Bongo. As a "nationalists gesture Mr. Bongo gave $21.5 million to Mr Mamboundou for the "development of his constituency" of Ndende.

In 2007 a police investigation into real estate owned by the president and his family in France disclosed 33 properties in Paris and Nice worth an estimated $190 million.

And back in 1999, an investigation by the American senate into the private practices of Citibank estimated that the Gabonese president held $130 million in the bank's personal accounts.

Mr Bongo was also linked to the 1990s investigation of the French state-owned oil firm Elf-Aquitaine, which exposed a murky world of bribes and secret funding of political parties.

He was named as the final beneficiary of millions of dollars transferred into Swiss bank accounts in the same investigation, but he strongly denied any wrongdoing.

Heir to the throne issues

In a much-publicized manifesto in December 2008, a Gabonese civil society network launched a scathing attack not only on Mr Bongo, but also his daughter Pascaline, who is his chief of staff, and his son Ali, who is currently Gabon's defense minister.

Both stand accused of ruling the country as their private property and trying to put themselves in prime position to succeed their father.

Pascaline Bongo for long has been accused of taking all major decisions for the country.

"We are back in a single-party regime. The only means of resistance for the Gabonese people is to go on strike and not to vote in elections," laments Mr Ben-Moubamba, a member of the Free Gabonese Civil Society Network.

A succession of strikes in education and health services over pay and poor working conditions shows that disgruntled civil servants has are started to mobilize against the regime.

Even France, which has major oil interests and a military base in Gabon, seems to have doubts about the future of the regime.

In a book on the French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, the investigative journalist Pierre Pean reveals a number of business deals between Mr Kouchner's private consultancy in the early 2000s and the Gabonese government.

Some feel that there is no coincidence in the timing of the release of the book and the current investigation into Mr Bongo's assets. This is believed to be causing a headache for French diplomats.

France, which has an estimated 10,000 expatriates in Gabon, quietly dispatched 300 paratroopers in January to reinforce its base.

The aim is reportedly to protect French citizens abroad. But observers point to this and say that the transition from Mr. Bongo's hold on Gabon might easily turn violent and France is only readying for the unavoidable.