TERRORISTS COMPEL AN ELECTED PRESIDENT TO LEAVE POWER! In 1983 the now ousted Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore in association with other army officers namely Capt.Tomas Sankara, Maj. Boukary Lingano and Capt. Henry Zongo successfully led a revolution in which Tomas Sankara was pronounced President. Sankaras Marxist policies drew him closer to Ugandas Yoweri Museveni who had captured power in 1986. In 987 Blaise Compaore led a coup where by Tomas Sankara was killed. In 1989 Blaise Compaore arrested, charged, summarily tried and executed both Henry Zongo and Boukary Lingano over treasonous allegations. In the same year Ugandas Museveni carried out his first purge against his former comrades in arms. The likes of Kashilingi, Chihandae, Saleh, Col Matovu and others were demoted, retired, detained etc. This was in preparation for the extension of the interim period. He was first elected as President in 1991 he was elected in an election that was boycotted by the opposition parties. In 2000 a constitutional amendment provided for a two term limit and reduced the years from seven to five for each term. At the end of his two terms in 2005 Compaure announced his intention to contest for the Presidency sparking off violent protests. He sailed through on a technical ground advanced by his Constitutional Council that the 2000 amendment could not be applied retrospectively. It is during the same year that the Ugandas Yoweri Museveni dished out five million shillings cash to members of parliament to remove the term limits that have allowed him to continue in office for 28years now. In November 2003 Compaure was reelected with his party (CDP) winning with 83.3%. In 2011 Compaures hold on power was challenged by violent protests. In February students rioted over the death in custody of a teenage that saw the burning of his Prime Ministers residence and his party headquarters. In April the soldiers including his presidential guards rioted over delayed salary payments. During these incidents, Compaure briefly went into hiding only to resurface once the heat had cooled down. It is during the same year that Museveni once again rigged his way for another term and unleashed his terror machinery against peaceful protesters. In June 2014 Compaures ruing CDP party called on him to organise a refrendum that would allow him to alter the constitution in order to escape term limits and seek reelection in 2015. It is almost the same time that Ugandas Museveni chaired his ruling partys caucus during a retreat whereby he was declared the sole candidate for the forthcoming elections. As a followup, Museveni has since then sacked his elected Secretary General and is organising his partys delegates conference to amend the party constitution to provide for his sole candidature. In Burkina Faso the National Assembly was scheduled to debate proposed amendment when the opposition called for a campaign of civil disobedience until the proposed amendment is withdrawn. The aggrieved citizens rioted by attacking the National Assembly building and set it on fire. If it had been in Musevenis Uganda those citizens would have been branded terrorists and dealt with as such. Moreover before the protests could commence Museveni would organise a hoax in respect of an imminent terror attack so as to dissuade protesters from converging. President Compaure reacted by abandoning the proposed constitutional amendment, declaring a state of emergency, and offering to work with the opposition to resolve the crisis. The protesters could not be duped by these concessions but instead demanded for President Compaures depature from power. The protesters resolve to continue with the struggle prompted the army to announce installation of a transitional government in consultation with all parties, dissolution of parliament, and a return to constitutional order within a year. The military did not come out clean on the role of President Compaore during the transitional period. Compaure himself had announced that he was ready to leave office at the end of the transition. Instead the protests intensified giving fresh demands for President Compaures resignation. On 31st October 2014 President Compaure announced that he had left the presidency and called a free and transparent election within 90 days. The army Chief of Staff Gen, Honare Traore took over reigns as head of state but later on Col. from the Presidential Guard was announced as the new head of state. Former President compaure was reported to be heading south in a heaving armed convoy. Like had been the case in Egypt under Mubarak the army in Burkina Faso has hijacked the peoples revolution in order to protect Blaise Compaore and the status quo. Article 43 of the countrys constitution provides for the President of the Senate to take over in the event of resignation of the President as has been the case unless the army declares that they have carried out a coup. Blaise Compaure has been both a trouble cause and at the same time a peace maker in the region. He introduced Liberias Charles Tylor to Gadafi, he was an active mediator in regional issues i.e in Togo, Corte Divore, and Mali. Since 1990 11 countries in sub-Saharan Africa have had leaders try to rewrite their constitutions to do away with term limits. 7 of these succeeded (Burkina Faso, Chad, Gabon, Gunea, Namibia, Uganda and Togo). 3 failed (Zambia, Malawi, and Nigeria). In 2010 Nigerias Mamadou Tadja efforts to extend term limits resulted in a coup. Still in Africa, Angola, Burundi, DRC, Liberia, Siera Leone will amend their constitutions to remove term limits in favor of the incumbent. Blaise Compoures party controlled 2/3 (73 out of 111 seats) of parliament. The argument by most autocratic leaders of Africa is that such amendments are done in a democratic manner with explicit consent of the people or their representatives as was the case with Rwandas Kagame, Ugandas Museveni and Congos Sassou Ngueso. MUSEVENI DISAPPOINTED BY BLAISE COMPAURE President Blaise Compaure belonged to the club of life Presidents where Museveni is the Secretary for Military Suppression of Dissenters. Blaise Compaures 27 years in power makes him one year junior to Musevenis 28 years in power. Blaise Compaure did not fully privatise the army and place his Presidential Guard under the command of his son so that it could ensure his continued presidency. He failed to build a well equipped and modern police force that would have brutally suppressed the protesters. He failed to use the intelligence services to create a hoax of terrorist attack so that he would exploit to internationally isolate the dissenting protesters. He failed to seek timely alliance with China, Rusia and North Korea that would have provided him with the necessary support to build capacity to cope with such situations. However, given that Blaise Compaures record is not as tinted as Musevenis to warrant prosecution by the ICC, Museveni has resolved not to be deterred by his colleagues grave mistakes but to use that development as a catalyist to fully prepare to take the bull by the horns. No doubt Museveni knows that the situation is Uganda is riper than Burkina Faso or northern Africa countries for a civil disobedience. That is why he has always maintained a watchful eye on leading opposition personalities and is trying to relocate taxi/bus parks, markets, petty traders and street vendors fro the city center in order to cripple ease of mobility for any serious potential protest. Museveni has one major weapon; threatening the west to withdraw his troops from Somalia if they dared to condemn his brutal suppression of dissent. INFORMATION IS POWER
Posted on: Sun, 02 Nov 2014 08:34:03 +0000
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