Christians play role in Burkina Faso’s transition government

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission/Mennonite Mission Network) – In my mother tongue, a proverb states, “The one who jumps into the river should not fear getting wet.”

With this revolution against Blaise Compaoré’s régime, anger was so high that people did not fear death. Many said that it is better to die while fighting for a better future than to die from hunger because of corruption and unemployment.

After Oct. 28, everyone knew that things would not be the same since people showed determination to prevent a constitutional change that would have allowed Compaoré to prolong his presidency beyond the 27 years he had already held power.

While political organizations and civilian society were setting up strategies, church members were on their knees interceding. In many cases, weeks of fasting and prayer were organized. In our local church, we divided into seven groups, each group praying a day in the week. The Lord did answer our prayers despite the 30 people who were killed and the numerous houses destroyed by fire. Those who shot the crowd were not Burkinabe soldiers. Many of them were mercenaries hired by the former president who did not trust the Burkinabe to guard him.

During Oct. 30 and 31, many things happened that really frightened the international community that expected a lot of violence. Fortunately, thanks to the Lord’s help through the continuous prayers from the church, the situation calmed down and a military officer, Isaac Zida, was asked to lead the country. Zida is an evangelical Christian. During this period of time, numerous meetings were held and our evangelical community took part.

When leaders were assembled to map out a transitional charter, the general secretary of the Federation of Evangelical Mission and Churches was designated as secretary in the commission. As the representative of the Mennonite Church of Burkina Faso in the capital city, I got the opportunity to be part of the voice of the evangelical community.

As churches worked together, we also were able to collect nearly $4,000 to help pay the hospital bills of those who were wounded during the protest.

Nov. 14, we were invited to meet President Isaac Zida at the evangelical headquarters. Accompanied by a big delegation, the president entered the conference room at about 6:40 p.m. After the photos were taken, he kindly requested his bodyguards and the journalists to leave the conference room. He thanked the Lord and the church through us. He said that he knew people prayed. He asked the pastors to keep on praying for wisdom for the government.

Nov. 16, two pastors from the Federation were present to help choose the civilian president. Since this was Sunday, while the nomination commission met, all the Christians prayed to ask the Lord’s guidance in this choice. The jury composed of representatives from the various groups in the country worked hard from 6 p.m. until 4 a.m. on Monday. We really praise God, who led them to choose a former diplomat, Michel Kafando, as the president. The country still needs our prayers.

Calixte Bananzaro is pastor of the Eglise Evangélique Mennonite du Burkina Faso (Evangelical Mennonite Church of Burkina Faso) congregation in Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso. He is also the program director of Association Nationale pour  la Traduction de la Bible et de l’Alphabetisation, a Wycliffe organization working in translation, literacy, and Scripture use programs in Burkina Faso.