Equatorial Guinea Obiang Mangue, and other close relatives with powerful positions in the security forces. The tension may be rooted in a power shift arising from the dramatic increase in oil production which has occurred since 1997. In 2004 a plane load of suspected mercenaries was intercepted in Zimbabwe while allegedly on the way to overthrow Obiang. A November 2004 report named Mark Thatcher as a financial backer of the 2004 Equatorial Guinea coup d'état attempt organized by Simon Mann. Various accounts also named the United Kingdom's MI6, the United States' CIA, and Spain as tacit supporters of the coup attempt. Nevertheless,
Convergence for Social Democracy (Equatorial Guinea) Convergence for Social Democracy (Equatorial Guinea) Convergence for Social Democracy (, CPDS) is the only opposition party in Equatorial Guinea. The CPDS is headed by a President and a Secretary-General, who are currently Santiago Obama Ndong and Andres Esono Ondo, respectively. The Secretary-General is defined as the leader of the party, while the President is assigned the role of a moderator. After operating clandestinely and publishing its newspaper "La Verdad" ("The Truth") in the early 1990s, the CPDS applied for legal recognition in November 1992 and was given legal recognition in February 1993.The party was led and founded by Secundino