In order to provide insight into President Ibrahim Traoré’s incredible transformation from unknown junta leader to political icon, The Post travelled to Burkina Faso.

On The Global Stage A Sudden Name from Nowhere

In the cluttered hallways of African politics, a dramatic distraction from the normal practice is a known fact that military figures sometimes emerge and dominate. What is less clear, yet more rare is how some of these previously obscure coup leaders have morphed into continental heroes. Over the past year, the travels of [Insert Leader’s Name – i.e. Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso, or something similar depending on context], have travelled past dusty barracks, along with nightly broadcasting, to become known by the mouths of millions of Africans who see in him not just another general- but simply a hero of Pan-African resistance.

This intrigue leads to one central question, and it is: how is it that a little-known coup leader arrived at the status of a Pan-African hero in such a short time?

Military Intervention and Authoritarian Rule in Africa

The contemporary political history of Africa has undergone a series of military take-overs.  Since the 1960s, countries such as Ghana, and now Guinea, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, can be considered countries who have undergone coups, often under the same pretense: power grabs, failed settlements and legitimizing military authoritarianism.  However, what many Africans are experiencing today creates a new narrative, that partly legitimizes the coup leaders and sometimes even helps them gain hero status.

The sequence of events typifies widespread public frustration. Across the continent, and often repeatedly, decades of failed democracy has meant rigged elections, dispossession and exploitation of resources by foreign capture, and politicians and leaders engaged with and seeking to please foreign institutions, rather than their own constituents. The “strong soldier” takes on a new character, one that is no longer dictatorial, but liberational.

 

The Emergence of an Unexpected Commander

When Ibrahim Traoré first emerged on national television announcing the coup against his country’s president, many people outside of Africa had not even heard of him. He was and still is, young and dressed in fatigues, rhyming off passionate rhetoric, but he wasn’t talking about power, but rather sovereignty, dignity, and struggling against neocolonial influence.

For the people of his country, he was a potent electrical charge. Here was a person that personified everything they felt about wanting to eradiate the poverty that existed alongside their vast mineral resources; their frustration with foreign troops abusing their hospitality, and their desire for a leader who actually sounded, unequivocally African.

Far from the traditional image of the “coup leader,” typically of dark sunglasses and stone-faced speeches, Traoré was framing a new type of image of would-be revolutionary patriot by social media, youth-led town halls, and pan-African iconography.

Pan-Africanism Revived

Pan-Africanism—the belief that Africa’s future lies in unity, self-sufficiency, and freedom from foreign control—used to be the guiding star for leaders like Kwame Nkrumah, Thomas Sankara, Patrice Lumumba, and Julius Nyerere before falling to their deaths under the weight of indebtedness, structural adjustment policies, poor governance and corruption notice.

Now we are in 2025, this obscure coup leader has reignited the flame. He gives loud and vigorous speeches that go beyond the borders of his country and speak of all Africans. He speaks of rejecting unfair trade arrangements, expelling foreign (and even local) corporations profiting off of Africans, and partnering with other countries that respect Africa’s dignity.

Panic happens and suddenly Pan-African hashtags are trending everywhere. From Dakar to Dar es Salaam, young Africans share clips of his speeches, usually even with Sankara and Lumumba in the background, intentionally finding parallels in history. In today’s age of social media, this message spreads faster than any coup ever could.

The Reasons For People’s Adulation

Three broad categories help elucidate why this leader has hit such a deep chord:

  1. Youthfulness: Given Africa’s average age is under 20, the majority of presidents are over 60, making any younger leader who speaks their language (literally and metaphorically) feel like a youthful generation defiance.
  2. Anti-Colonial Rhetoric: Many Africans feel their colonial pomp never left, decades after independence. French military bases, Western mining/extraction companies and IMF conditions are tantamount to the sense of “external control.” His defiance, to all of these powers, feels like an overdue rebellion.
  3. Symbol of Defiance: In a world where Africans perceive all African leaders are blindly loyal to forces they cannot control or challenge, this leader is forever daring to oppose these conditions. Expelling foreign troops, renegotiating contracts and/or walking out of international summits might frighten Western diplomats, but thrill local populations.

The Worldwide Reaction

Even so, this surge has not happened without pain. Western governments call him “undemocratic” while expressing concerns about “instability.” International press continually references him as a “strongman” instead of a visionary. Sanctions are applied, aid is cut off, and he is framed as the region’s greatest threat to peace.

Yet this only serves to bolster the Pan-African discourse. For so many Africans, the backlash from the West is proof he is on the right course of action. One young activist in Lagos said it best: “If they are scared of him, then maybe he is the leader that we have been waiting for.”

The Space Between Myth and Reality

It is clear that there is a contradiction to be faced in transforming a coup leader into a Pan-African hero. Governing is much more challenging than speaking. He faces many obstacles such as security challenges, the economic crisis, and international isolation. Critics have pointed out that the same people who are cheering him on now, may turn against him in the future if the price of bread rises or if there are more restrictions on freedom.

However, the myth is stronger than reality for good and for bad at this moment. He is not just a president of a single country, but rather the universal face and voice of the continent itself. His face is painted on murals, his words are in silkscreen on T-shirts, and his rebellion lives through student protests and community rallies.

History-Based Lessons

 The ascension of this leader certainly resonates with historic forms of heroes who similarly emerged from obscurity to continental recognition. Lumumba was a postal clerk before becoming the prime minister of Congo. Sankara was a young army captain before becoming the revolutionary leader of Burkina Faso. Each was a moment when Africa seemed to take a step towards real liberation.

Nevertheless, history also cautions us. Lumumba was assassinated within months of taking office. Sankara was murdered by his own comrades. Their aspirations were ultimately undermined by internal betrayals and external interferences. Will history be repeated, or has the tide actually turned in Africa’s favor?

Is Someone Becoming a Hero? Or Just One Heroic Moment

The saga of how a little-known coup leader turned into a Pan-African darling is still being written, and right now, he represents millions of frustrations, hopes, and aspirations. Whether history remembers him as a permanent figure in the lexicon of African history, or simply another flash in the pan, lies in his ability to navigate through the much stormier seas of governance, diplomacy, and the popular imagination.

But one thing is certain: at a time when many people were ready to declare that Pan-Africanism was a dead and forgotten phenomenon, he has resuscitated a movement. He has awakened a newer generation to the reality that the struggle for dignity and sovereignty is not over.

And maybe, in that sense, he has already written himself into the narrative of the continent—not simply a coup leader, but a hero of a people searching for true freedom.