National day of fasting and prayers: In Dédougou, we prayed that the weapons would be silent forever

The customary and religious people of the city of Dédougou, capital of the Boucle du Mouhoun region, responded to the call of the highest authorities, inviting actions of prayer and fasting for the return of peace to the Burkina Faso, this Saturday, May 20, 2023.

They met in the governorate of Dédougou to break the fast and beg the supreme creator to stretch out his pacifying hand over Burkina Faso, threatened on all sides by the terrorist peril. The breaking of the fast took place in the presence of the administrative authorities, with the governor of the Boucle du Mouhoun region in the lead. The customary and religious communities have, on this occasion, succeeded to the platform which to invoke the ancestors, which to implore God. Notabilities competed in spiritual actions to ask God to spread peace, stability and tranquility throughout the territory of Burkina Faso.

Catholics prayed that the guns would forever be silenced.

Military action and spirituality as solutions

Long before these unusual reunions, the day of Saturday May 20, 2023 was punctuated by prayers, incantations and invocations in favor of peace in Burkina Faso, everywhere in chapels, mosques and other places of worship and adoration of the city of Dédougou, according to Bishop Prosper Bonaventure Ky.

Spokesman of the customary and religious, the bishop of the diocese of Dédougou affirmed that the solution to terrorism is not only military; it is also spiritual. “Of course, you need military defense, but you also need prayer, placing yourself in the hands of God, asking God that his will be done,” he argued, before specifying that the believer’s Kalashnikov is prayer.

For peace, forgiveness, justice and love, the Protestant community prayed.

This day, he adds, is an appeal to each Burkinabè to be the architect of this much sought-after peace. “Through fasting, everyone tried to question themselves, everyone wondered about the future of this nation”, let the bishop agree. By his daily action, each citizen must constitute himself as an actor in the defense of the country, by behaving as an honest man, for the common good. Thus, everyone will do their part to regain peace in this country, faith of Bishop Prosper Bonaventure Ky.

Muslims recited surahs and Quranic verses to implore divine mercy.

Faith and belief at the heart of the day

The governor of the Boucle du Mouhoun region, Babo Pierre Bassinga, immediately noted that “we have a God who can once again put an end to this series of scourges which we have been facing for years and which have bereaved us”. The spirit of faith and belief is therefore at the heart of this day of fasting and prayer, insisted the governor. “We observed this day to ask God to have mercy on us, to dry our tears, and to restore all that we have lost over these years. It was above all a question of believing that God will act in the days to come and terrorism will be a parenthesis for Burkina Faso”, he implored.

Babo Pierre Bassinga, governor of the Boucle du Mouhoun region.

Making a historical reminder of the advent of the terrorist phenomenon in the Boucle du Mouhoun region, the governor said that the region recorded its first attack in 2017. Since then, security incidents have metastasized, causing to this day the death of more than 200 civilians and about 80 members of the defense and security forces. To this macabre lot must be added the destruction of material goods and the displacement of several thousand people.

Customary, religious, administrative authorities and populations of Dédougou participated in the ceremony of breaking the fast and prayers.

Yacouba SAMA

National day of fasting and prayers: In Dédougou, we prayed that the weapons would be silent forever