(French: [blɛz kɔpaɔʁe]; born 3 February 1951)[3][4] is a Burkinabé politician and former military officer who served as the second president of Burkina Faso from 1987 until his government was overthrown in 2014. But large pro-democracy demonstrations in Burkina Faso last month largely escaped the Western media’s radar. Since January, tensions have flared between the WestAfrican country’s authoritarian government and the impoverished masses yearning for democratic reforms. In the often troubled politics of WestAfrica, BlaiseCompaoré, the former president of Burkina Faso, is a quaint figure, almost of another era.coupleader and political godfather of Charles Taylor, is not the most reliable man to preach democracy and civilian rule.”8. Burkina Faso's opposition parties and the African Union rejected the army's seizure of power in the WestAfrican country on Saturday after the resignation of President BlaiseCompaore, setting the stage for fresh protests. Presidential guard officers in Burkina Faso have seized power in a coup, with reports of more than 10 deaths amid protests in the capital, Ouagadougou. A close ally of former President BlaiseCompaore has been named the country's new leader, state television reports. By Roddy Barclay After 27 years in office, BlaiseCompaoré today announced his resignation as President of Burkina Faso. The coup which precipitated his downfall was very different from the one which brought him to office back in 1987. Move to apply to coupleader Gen. Gilbert Diendere, 13 other individuals, as well as 3 political parties linked to former president BlaiseCompaore. Seeing that Africa’s development prospects were being crippled by its crushing foreign debt to Western creditors, Sankara, at a July 1987 summit of the OAU, urged Africanleadersto simply refuse to pay.