Captain Ibrahim Traoré has vowed to “decisively crush” regime saboteurs seeking to destabilise his leadership.
The young captain who seized power in 2022, appeared to have drawn the marker on acts of sabotage aimed at bringing his regime down.
“We will act very firmly” against Burkinabé who “manipulate and conspire against their motherland”, the president said menacingly during a visit to the national television headquarters which was the target of a rocket attack last week.
As for the “patriots” and the friends of Burkina Faso, Captain Traore exhorted them to “remain calm and get rid of the manipulators who are trying to undermine the efforts of the transition and destabilise Burkina”.
Captain Traoré assured investors that his country “remains frequentable” and advised them “not to listen to fake news’ about his country.
”We are here and we will continue to work for the happiness of the Burkinabe people” he insisted.
Since September 2022 when he came to power, Captain Traoré has faced multiple attempts at destabilisation, according to a military tribunal.
Several officers, including the former head of the national gendarmerie, have been in detention since October 2023, accused of conspiring against state security.
A week after the shooting incident in the courtyard of the national television station, Captain Ibrahim Traoré appeared at the same scene, smiling and relaxed, according to pictures published by the Faso presidency.
He said that the shooting had taken place “during the rotation” of the guards responsible for the security of the building. “(…) In an attempt to check a number of things, someone unfortunately fired the shot,” he added.
The captain assured citizens that those injured as a result of the incident had been taken care of by his own medical team and had “left the hospital.”
He said he and his ministers did not flee the Council of Ministers during the shooting incident contrary to what was reported on public television by the Western media, which he described as “liars”.
“That is absolutely not the case. We were there. The incident happened while we were in the Council of Ministers. If people had fled, there would have been no press conference after the meeting. Don’t listen to these people who are trying to distract others. We are not running away. We’re not backing down, we’re not giving up. They have said what they want,” said Captain Ibrahim Traoré.
For those who feel there is a power vacuum, Traore challenged them to ”come and take it,” assuring his audience that “mood swings are not true.”
In the wake of the rocket incident, a controversy arose on the Internet as to whether or not President Faso would be staying in the capital Ouagadougou.
DS/te/lb/as/APA