In a river interview, the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso questioned the partnership between Paris and Ouagadougou. He considers, half-words, that this one is not fair.
"There are questions to be asked." It is in these terms that the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso, Albert Ouédraogo, launched a debate on the partnership between Ouagadougou and its former colonial power, France. It has been barely six months since the Prime Minister took office and the least we can say is that he does not mince his words.
During an interview on Burkina Faso's public television (RTB), the Burkinabe Prime Minister confirmed that a partnership with Paris was not necessarily a win-win. “I think that indeed there are questions to be asked. We understand the claims because France, it's true, it's the historical partner, it's the first partner, even in terms of numbers”.
“Aid must be used to assassinate aid”
Paraphrasing Thomas Sankara, who had indicated that "aid must be used to assassinate aid", Albert Ouédraogo affirmed that, "if for years this cooperation has not made it possible to assassinate aid, we must To ask questions ".
As in Mali, the people of Burkina Faso are on the front line to demand more equity in relations between Ouagadougou and Paris. We remember, at the end of July, that several dozen people had gathered in the capital of Burkina Faso to protest against the presence of France in Burkina Faso and had called for a large mobilization on August 12. "As leaders, we cannot continue to remain deaf, to remain insensitive to these demands, because we have important components of our people who are demanding it," said the Prime Minister.
If he brushes aside the accusations of the existence of an "anti-French feeling" in advance - "There is no problem between the people of Burkina Faso and the French", he assures us - the Prime Minister affirms that "the problem arises in terms of politics and cooperative relations between governments".
It must be said that the exit, on July 14, of the French ambassador to Burkina Faso, Luc Hallade, still remains in the throat of part of the local population. The diplomat had dared to affirm that "the absence of results is causing growing frustration in the country and that this endogenous conflict is, in reality, a civil war: part of the population is rebelling against the State and is seeking to overthrow it."
The blunder of the French ambassador in Burkina Faso
More than a month after these remarks, Albert Ouédraogo says he is "indignant" and has "had a bad experience of these remarks", despite apologies from Luc Hallade and France.
Despite everything, like Bamako, will Ouagadougou turn to other foreign powers? “The diversification of partnerships is based on several principles. First the principle of freedom. For us, it's going to the partner that suits us, even if it means offending historical partners, summarizes the Prime Minister. If some partners are not happy with the fact that we are going with others, it will be against our will that we will break our partnership with them”.
A foot call to China, or even to Russia? With a certain diplomacy, in any case, the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso does not exclude anything. He simply calls for "sincere partners who actually want to help us to go into a logic of win-win partnership". And France does not seem to be in this perspective…