Burundi ruling party to decide if president to seek 3rd term

Nairobi - Burundi's ruling CNDD-FDD will hold a party congress this weekend to decide whether President Pierre Nkurunziza will seek a third five-year term, a move that the opposition and diplomats worry could spark fresh unrest.

"It will be on Saturday," CNDD-FDD party president Pascal Nyabenda told Reuters in a short phone message when asked about the date for the congress. He also confirmed the party would vote that day on whether Nkurunziza will be the candidate.

Opponents say another term would violate a 10-year limit outlined in the constitution and an agreement that ended a 12-year civil war in 2005. His backers say his first term does not count because he was picked by lawmakers and not voted in.