From 1970 to 1989, he was Commander-in-Chief of the National Police Forces; also during that period, he served as High Commissioner at the Presidency[1][2] from 1974 to 1975[2] and was appointed as Secretary of State for Information in 1975.
[9] Although Assélé was considered a "long-time and trusted ally" of Bongo,[8] Léon Ossiali was appointed to replace him as Commander-in-Chief of the National Police Forces on 12 January 1989.
[18] On 5 September 2004, after 14 years out of the government, Assélé was appointed as Minister of Labor and Employment;[6][19] as a result he had to step down as Mayor of the Third Arrondissement due to incompatibility of functions.
[20] Assélé backed Bongo in the November 2005 presidential election and participated in his campaign team as President of the Security Commission.
[21] Following Bongo's re-election, Assélé was moved to the post of Minister of the Civil Service, Administrative Reform, and the Modernization of the State on 21 January 2006.
[19] In the December 2006 parliamentary election, Assélé ran for re-election to the second seat from the Third Arrondissement; he was initially declared the winner, but the opposition Union of the Gabonese People (UPG) protested that.
[22][23] Assélé had been continuously elected to that seat since 1990, and his defeat there, in what was considered his stronghold, was viewed as a possible sign of the CLR's declining fortunes.
Unlike many other leaders of the Presidential Majority, who defected to run their own candidacies or back opposition candidates, Assélé strongly supported Bongo.
[41] At a rally for Bongo in the Third Arrondissement on 27 August, he denounced André Mba Obame, who had left the PDG to run as an independent candidate.
[43][44] Bongo won the presidential election with about 42% of the vote, according to official results, but the opposition alleged fraud and appealed to the Constitutional Court in September 2009.
"[45] In early 2010, the CLR under Assélé's leadership was one of the only significant parties to remain allied with the PDG as part of the Presidential Majority.
[16] He led a delegation of political parties supporting President Bongo at a meeting with the latter on 15 December 2010 to discuss the forthcoming parliamentary election and other matters.