Burkinabese junta leader shuts down rivalry rumours

Captain Ibrahim Traore put an end to the rumours of rivalry in his military junta on the 23rd of July. According to RFI, the leader of Burkina Faso made multiple declarations to make clear the fact that he led the junta alone, while reiterating that he would severely punish any “anti-revolutionary” behaviour. 

In the last few months, social media has seen an increase in rumours that the military leader was being rivalled, his influence matched by others, particularly his number two. Ibrahim Traore responded by clarifying that “There is no number one, nor a number two; there is only one captain in a boat”.

The disappearance from the public eye of multiple high-ranking officers of the regime, presented as his lieutenants, has only fueled more rumours. 

A first telling disappearance is Oumarou Yabre’s absence from all of his state functions. He occupied the role of chief of the secret services as well as president of the national council for state security. Yabre has been absent from many of his usual public duties. According to a source from the AFP, the military man has not been to his office at the headquarters of the secret services, while the security surrounding his house and office has drastically reduced. 

Captain Traore further mentioned Imam Ishaq Kindo, arrested on the 26th of May after publicly criticising new regulations concerning religions and Islam. Traore further added that “This man is fundamentally bad…He thought of himself as very strong because he created an Islamic police in 2019… I repeat: there is only one captain in a boat”.

Other important military men have disappeared from their functions, such as Captain Kiswendsida Azaria Farouk Sorgho, ex-spokesperson for the military junta and considered number three of the Burkinabese regime. Additionally, his father, Adama Luc Sorgho, former minister of infrastructure, has been kidnapped by armed men a few days after his son’s arrest. 

Ibrahim Traore’s message was clear: “All men that work with me know my ways… and if one of them makes a mistake, I am going to crush you without any remorse. There are no strong men with me”.

RFI, Maghrebi.org