OUAGADOUGOU – The new military leader of Burkina Faso has promised a return to the normal constitutional order “when the conditions are right.”
Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Damiba led a mutiny that ousted President Roch Kaboré on Monday. He blamed the president for failing to contain violence by Islamist militants.
He made his first national speech since taking power on the eve of an emergency summit of West African leaders, called in response to the coup.
Burkina Faso is the third West African country to witness a military takeover in the past year. Guinea and Mali have had sanctions imposed on them by regional bloc Ecowas to press them to return to constitutional order.
Wearing a red beret and army fatigues, Lt-Col Damiba, 41, said: “When the conditions are right, according to the deadline that our people will define in all sovereignty, I commit to a return to a normal constitutional order.”
He said he will meet representatives of various sections of society to agree on a roadmap for reform.
He added that Burkina Faso needed international partners “more than ever,” following condemnation of the coup.
“I call on the international community to support our country so it can exit this crisis as soon as possible.”
He did not specify which part of the international community he wanted support from – the coup comes at a time when Russia is competing with France to help West African countries tackle a growing Islamist insurgency.
In his speech, Lt-Col Damiba said the fight against jihadists would be his priority and promised to recapture rural areas, allowing the 1.5 million people who have fled their homes to return.
Before seizing power, he had been at the forefront of the fight against Islamist militants and wrote a book on the topic last year.
Similar troubles in neighbouring Mali led to a military coup in May 2021 – one that was broadly welcomed by the public. – BBC.
