Ouagadougou: The draft law on religious freedoms aims to give more weight to umbrella organizations and religious leaders in the regulation of religious practice, in order not to leave ground to self-proclaimed preachers and the disorderly opening of places of worship, assured the President of Faso, Captain Ibrahim Traore. Following the adoption of the bill on religious freedoms, which has caused misunderstandings, the President of Faso, Captain Ibrahim Traore, asked his compatriots not to be manipulated and to seek to understand better.

According to Burkina Information Agency, the head of state emphasized that the text aims to strengthen the legitimacy of umbrella organizations and religious leaders by entrusting them with the organization of practices specific to each religion. "Today, someone can get up, build their mosque, their temple or their church and do whatever they want. It is this situation that the law seeks to regulate," explained the President of Faso.

Once the law is adopted, "no one will be able to get up, claim titles, and start preaching whatever they want. If you are to be an imam or religious leader called upon to preach, the law stipulates that your umbrella organization must issue you a document certifying that you have the capacity to perform this function. This gives more legitimacy to religious leaders, instead of allowing disorder to take hold," the head of state added.

'In short, it's about giving more weight to the umbrella organizations and allowing them to organize religious practice, each within its own sphere,' concluded President Ibrahim Traore.