Burkinabé parliamentary election, 1992

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Parliamentary elections were held in Burkina Faso on 24 May 1992. They were the first parliamentary elections held in the country since 1978, and the first to be held under the 1991 constitution. [1] The result was a victory for the Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement, which won 78 of the 107 seats in the National Assembly.

Burkina Faso country in Africa

Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa. It covers an area of around 274,200 square kilometres (105,900 sq mi) and is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north; Niger to the east; Benin to the southeast; Togo and Ghana to the south; and Ivory Coast to the southwest. The July 2018 population estimate by the United Nations was 19,751,651. Burkina Faso is a francophone country, with French as the official language of government and business. Roughly 40% of the population speaks the Mossi language. Formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta (1958–1984), the country was renamed "Burkina Faso" on 4 August 1984 by then-President Thomas Sankara. Its citizens are known as Burkinabé. Its capital is Ouagadougou.

Constitution of Burkina Faso

The Constitution of Burkina Faso was approved by referendum on 2 June 1991, formally adopted 11 June 1991 and last amended in January 2002.

Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement Burkinabe political party

Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement was the ruling political party in Burkina Faso. It was founded in April 1989 by the Union of Burkinabè Communists, the Revolutionary Military Organization (OMR) and factions from Communist Struggle Union - The Flame and Burkinabè Communist Group as a party based on Marxism, but strongly pragmatic, adopting the free market in its economic plan. It renounced Marxism–Leninism in March 1991.

Contents

Background

In 1991 President Blaise Compaoré had allowed some openings towards a multi-party system, various political parties (many of them in alliance with the President's Organization for Popular Democracy - Labour Movement, ODP-MT) were established. But opposition parties were not satisfied with the pace of reforms. They called on the formation a sovereign national conference, which would govern the country until the holding of elections. Compaoré refused to bow to this demand, and presidential elections were held in December (boycotted by the opposition, and held amid violent protests). [2] The elections had initially been called for 9 January 1991, but were postponed until 1992.

Blaise Compaoré Burkinabé politician, President of Burkina Faso from 1987 to 2014

Blaise Compaoré is a Burkinabé politician who was president of Burkina Faso from 1987 to 2014. He was a top associate of President Thomas Sankara during the 1980s, and in October 1987, he led a coup d'état during which Sankara was killed. Subsequently, he introduced a policy of "rectification", overturning the leftist and Third Worldist policies pursued by Sankara. He won elections in 1991, 1998, 2005, and 2010 in what were considered unfair circumstances. His attempt to amend the constitution to extend his 27-year term caused the 2014 Burkinabé uprising. On 31 October 2014, Compaoré resigned, whereupon he fled to the Ivory Coast.

Democratization is the transition to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. It may be the transition from an authoritarian regime to a full democracy, a transition from an authoritarian political system to a semi-democracy or transition from a semi-authoritarian political system to a democratic political system. The outcome may be consolidated or democratization may face frequent reversals. Different patterns of democratization are often used to explain other political phenomena, such as whether a country goes to a war or whether its economy grows. Democratization itself is influenced by various factors, including economic development, history, and civil society. The ideal result from democratization is to ensure that the people have the right to vote and have a voice in their political system.

A multi-party system is a system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national election, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coalition. Apart from one-party-dominant and two-party systems, multi-party systems tend to be more common in parliamentary systems than presidential systems and far more common in countries that use proportional representation compared to countries that use first-past-the-post elections.

Campaign

Between January and May 1992 the Coordination of Democratic Forces opposition coalition fell apart, with many of its constituents deciding to contest the elections. [2] A total of 27 political parties eventually registered to compete in the elections, although only four had candidates in all provinces. [1]

Provinces of Burkina Faso

The regions of Burkina Faso are divided into 45 administrative provinces. These 45 provinces are currently sub-divided into 351 departments or communes.

Conduct

According to international observers the elections were largely free and fair, whereas opposition parties claimed that there had been massive fraud. [2] [3]

Voter turnout was 33.8%, [4] higher than the 25% participation in the presidential elections in 1991.

Results

PartyVotes%Seats
Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement 590,80848.578
National Convention of Progressive Patriots–Social Democratic Party 146,53012.012
African Democratic Rally 138,16811.36
Alliance for Democracy and Federation 105,9508.74
African Independence Party 50,4184.12
Burkinabé Socialist Bloc 28,6672.40
Group of Patriotic Democrats 22,8201.90
Movement for Tolerance and Progress 22,0501.80
Burkinabé Socialist Party 1
Movement of Progressive Democrats 1
Movement for Socialist Democracy 1
Rally of Social-Democrat Independents 1
Union of Social Democrats 1
New Social Democracy 0
Union of Greens for the Development of Burkina 0
Invalid/blank votes40,962––
Total1,260,107100107
Registered voters/turnout3,727,84333.8–
Source: Nohlen et al.

The overwhelming majority of the elected MPs, 101 out of 107, were male. [1] The new parliament had 17 teachers/school inspectors, 12 executives, 12 professors, 12 engineers, 5 physicians, 5 jurists, 5 economists and 5 businessmen, whilst the remaining 34 MPs belonged to other professional categories. [1]

Aftermath

Following the elections, Youssouf Ouedraogo of ODP-MT became Prime Minister of the country. On June 20, 1992, a new seven-member cabinet was presented to the public. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Burkina Faso International Parliamentary Union
  2. 1 2 3 Karatnycky, Adrian, Charles Graybow, Douglas W. Payne, Joseph E. Ryan, Leonard R. Sussman, and George Zarycky. Freedom in the World: The Annual Survey of Political Rights & of Civil Liberties, 1993-1994 . New York: Freedom House, 1994. pp. 172-173
  3. ↑ Roger East & Richard Thomas (2003) Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders , Europa, p77
  4. ↑ Nohlen, D, Krennerich, M & Thibaut, B (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p134 ISBN   0-19-829645-2
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