Saye Zerbo

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Saye Zerbo (born August 27, 1932) was a President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from November 25, 1980 to November 7, 1982. He led a coup in 1980, but was resisted by trade unions and was overthrown by Maj. Dr. Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo and the Council of Popular Salvation (CSP).

Zerbo comes from Tougan in Sourou Province in the western part of the country. He went to school in Mali and Saint-Louis, Senegal. Then he joined the French military and attended the military academy Saint-Cyr. As a paratrooper, Zerbo took part in both the First Indochina War as well as the Algerian War of Independence. After the Upper Volta's independence from France in 1960, he switched into that country's army in 1961.

In the military government of Sangoulé Lamizana, who ruled Upper Volta from 1966, Saye Zerbo was foreign minister from 1974 to 1976. He also held the positions of commander of the regiment in the capital Ouagadougou and director of the military intelligence agency.

On November 25, 1980, Zerbo staged a coup against President Lamizana, who had been re-elected democratically in 1978, and took on the positions of head of state and government. The constitution, which had been introduced in 1977, was suspended and the Military Committee of Recovery for National Progress (Comité Militaire de Redressement pour le Progrès National; CMPRN) established. The trade unions in the country opposed his seizure of power, although they had supported Zerbo for a long time, and on November 7, 1982, Saye Zerbo was deposed in another coup d'etat. He was succeeded by Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo as the head of the Council of Popular Salvation (Conseil du Salut du Peuple; CSP).

After being deposed, Zerbo was also incarcerated. On August 4, 1983, Ouédraogo was deposed by Thomas Sankara. In May 1984, Zerbo and Lamizana were put on trial for various crimes. Zerbo was indicted to 15 years in prison. During his imprisonment, Zerbo converted from Islam to Christianity. He was released from jail in August 1985 after Blaise Compaoré had deposed Sankara and sought Zerbo's advice. His conviction from 1984 was annuled on February 18, 1997 by the supreme court of Burkina Faso.