President of Burkina Faso Blaise Compaore has refused to step down after protests in his country escalated on Thursday.
Campaore has however called off the state of emergency after appearing on television to say “I have heard the message.”
The protesters set Parliament on fire after Members of Parliament attempted to amend the constitution to extend the president’s stay in power after 27 years in office.
[contextly_sidebar id=”q95iSua6Ju7MexU43DkY1WKM9aiMqdOu”]Similar protests were also organized in other towns in Burkina Faso apart from the capital Ouagadougou.
Campaore said he will see out the rest of his term as president saying “a return to the constitutional order is expected in no more than 12 months.”
One of the leaders of the demonstration in Burkina Faso Samsk Ledjah on Thursday told Citi News that they “will not end the protests until Campaore leaves.”
“If I stay in my house they will kill me, I prefer to die on the street fighting for the youth,” he added.
“Blaise Campaore should go away, that is the only thing we want now.”
Meanwhile, UN’s special envoy for West Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, is expected in Burkina Faso on Friday to try to ease the crisis, the UN said.
The US is also said to be “deeply concerned” about the crisis in Burkina Faso and criticised Compaore’s attempts to alter the constitution to extend his rule.
UN chief Ban Ki-moon dispatched a special envoy to help restore calm and the European Union called for an end to the violence.
Meanwhile, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has sent a strong warning to the people of Burkina Faso that it will not “recognize any ascension to power through non constitutional means,” in the midst of the current political challenges.
President Mahama said ECOWAS has followed with “grave attention the events unfolding in Burkina Faso and the tension around the process leading to the consideration of the draft bill on constitutional amendment.”
By: Nana Boakye-Yiadom/citifmonline.com/Ghana