20/08/2026
The moment Leopold Sedar Senghor heard that Thomas Sankara had changed the name of his country from Haute Volta to Burkina Faso 🇧🇫 , and the people who live there will be called Burkinabes, he sent a letter to him saying Mr President, this appellation does not correspond to French therefore I will suggest that you call the population Burkineux and Burkineuse. But Thomas Sankara replied to him:
"We are not french people and we don't want to speak French better than you. We are Africans and this appellation shall remain like this. "
In only 4 yrs in power (1983-87), Thomas Sankara
Built 350 schools, roads, railways without foreign aid.
No loan
Increased literacy rate by 60%
Banned forced marriages
Gave poor people land
Vaccinated 2.5 million kids
Planted 10 million trees
Appointed females to high governmental positions, encouraged them to work, recruited them into the military, and granted pregnancy leave during
sold off the government fleet of Mercedes cars and made the Renault 5 (the cheapest car sold in Burkina Faso at that time) the official service car of the ministers.
He reduced the salaries of all public servants, including his own, and forbade the use of government chauffeurs and 1st class airline tickets.
As President, he lowered his salary to $450 a month and limited his possessions to a car, four bikes, three guitars, a fridge and a broken freezer.
He opposed foreign aid, saying that “he who feeds you, controls you.”
Drove out French imperialism & withdrew Burkina Faso from IMF
A very productive life that was brutally cut short. He was assassinated at the age of 38 by France 🇫🇷 and its ally through Friend. Rest on son of the soil.
A king in making who inspires millions of people today in the World.
