Captain Ibrahim Traoré, Burkina Faso’s president, has said that his country is not operating under a democratic system but is undergoing what he described as a “popular, progressive revolution.”
While speaking during a flag-raising ceremony at the Koulouba Palace recently, Traoré challenged the widely held opinion that democracy is necessary for development, arguing that no country has advanced through democratic rule.
“If we have to say it loud and clear here, we are not in a democracy, we are in a popular, progressive revolution.
“We must necessarily go through a revolution, and we are indeed in a revolution. So this question of democracy or libertinism of action or expression has no place. As much as you think you are free to speak and act, the other is also free to speak and act, and there we end up with a society of disorder.
“It is impossible to name a country that has developed in democracy. Democracy is only the result,” Burkina24 quoted him as saying.
The junta leader reiterated that his government would continue to communicate, explain, and make people understand what revolution is.
Following a coup that overthrew interim President Paul-Henri Damiba in September 2022, Traoré came to limelight for his unconventional policies and manner of administration.
His administration places a high priority on national development and self-reliance, emphasizing revolutionary change over democracy in the Western sense.
The 37-year-old President recently rejected Saudi Arabia’s offer to build 200 mosques in his country.
He urged the Islamic country to rather invest in essential infrastructure projects that would directly benefit his people.
