Death of former Malian president IBK: a "sincere democrat" who "lack of answers"

Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (photo) is received by his Mauritanian counterpart Ould Abdel Aziz for three days.

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3 mins

Former Malian President (2013-2020) Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta died in Mali this Sunday, January 16, at the age of 76.

The reactions of personalities as well as anonymous Malian citizens poured in to pay tribute to him or to evoke his record more factually.

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Shortly after the announcement of the

, many groups of men and women took the direction of his private home in Bamako, noted our correspondent on the spot, 

.

Politicians of all persuasions, parents, friends and citizens expressed their condolences to the bereaved family.

For its part, the Malian junta presented its "

" in a press release.

The text specifies that the information relating to the funeral ceremony will be the subject of another press release.

We should therefore perhaps expect a national funeral, in any case with the participation of the highest Malian authorities.

The last evening visitors of the former president are unanimous on several points.

The man who was a lover of books and writers no longer led conversations in front of his guests as he was used to.

He was rather “

” even confides a source.

Why ?

The conditions of the end of his reign, by a coup d'etat.

He also had time to sum up the betrayals of which he was the victim.

But the man was also sick, he was traveling between Bamako and Abu Dhabi to take care in an American hospital.

IBK, he was the hope.

But we were disappointed, totally disappointed with everything he did.

And he put the country in chaos

Malians react, between respect, sadness and criticism

►

Baber Gano, current secretary general of the RPM, the party of former president Ibrahim Boubakar Keïta, was minister three times under IBK, of which he was a close collaborator.

He expresses his sadness and pays tribute to IBK and his commitment to Mali, despite his fall.

What I remember from IBK is an enlightened man, a sincere democrat.

History was what it was but IBK is a Republican.

He was misunderstood but he still cared about the future of his country.

Baber Gano, secretary general of the RPM, party of the former president of Mali

Baber Gano, secretary general of the RPM, party of the former president

David Bache

Amadou Koïta is the president of the PS-Yeleen Coura, an allied party of IBK, of which he was minister several times. He is now a member of the cadre of political parties opposed to the extension of the Transition. He expresses his sadness and his admiration for IBK.

My immense pain is equal to the affection, admiration and respect I had for the man.

Mali and the Malians have just lost a great man, a great president [...] He has received me several times since the military coup.

For him, only Mali counts.

It was fate that wanted what happened to happen.

He followed with great interest and concern what was happening in the country.

He has always hoped that the young soldiers who took power would do better than him and that through their management of power the Malians would be reconciled [...]

Amadou Koïta, president of the PS

For his part, Nouhoum Sarr bows to the memory of IBK, but he nevertheless draws from his years in power an obviously unflattering balance sheet. He is president of the African Front for Development and currently sits on the National Transitional Council. In the spring of 2020, he was on the front line during the monster demonstrations which demanded the fall of President IBK for several months. This was just before his overthrow in the August 2020 military coup. 

Political divisions are below human values: we bow to his memory [...] He will still have left a country divided, in crisis [...], voluntarily or not, allowed racketeering to develop in the summit of the State [...] and unfortunately did not know how to provide adequate responses, which ended up bringing about the fall of his regime.

We pray to the Almighty for his soul to rest in peace.

Nouhoum Sarr, member of the CNT, former M5 activist who demonstrated for the fall of IBK

Among foreign heads of state, former Nigerien President Mahamadou Issoufou was one of the first to react to the death of the former Malian president.

He said he felt immense sadness when he learned of the death of his friend and fellow political activist for 30 years.

It is with great sadness, with immense sadness that I have just learned of the disappearance of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta.

[…] I remember him as a cultured man, a great patriot and a committed Pan-Africanist.

I really lose in him a friend and a comrade.

Mahamadou Issoufou, former President of Niger.

Mahamadou Issoufou, former President of Niger.

Esdras Ndikumana

In Côte d'Ivoire, Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara "

".

He presents his " 

 ".

Same words in the mouth of his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall who offers his heartfelt condolences to his family and to the Malian people " 

".

Chadian politician and opponent Saleh Kebzabo had known IBK for several decades, while living in Paris, France.

He was, he says, a man who loved life, but also a man of power.

Very quickly, when he entered the circles of power, he stood out, especially when he was Prime Minister under Alpha, with his grip that he left as a souvenir to the Malians [...] Unfortunately, with the he effect of power and above all this gangrene which has been eating away at Mali for at least fifty years, like others before him and certainly others after him, he did not know how, could not, take the right measure of the situation, in the face of the rising phenomenon of jihadism which finally prevailed.

I knew a very jovial man in private, who liked to joke a lot, always liked to listen to others to have a good time.

This is what I will miss the most in IBK.

Saleh Kebzabo, Chadian opponent

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Mali: former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta is dead