No outcry from the PAN African Parliament on Burundi’s President’s bid to run for the third term!

It is extremely worrying that the 6^th Session of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) which sat between 18-27 May 2015 did not explicitly discouraged the concerning behaviour of the Burundian President Mister Pierre Nkurunziza who has made international mockery of Africa for wanting a third term in Office. The attempted coup in the beginning of May is a serious offence and should be discouraged by every means as the international community did. But on the same token the pronouncement to avail himself for the third term is equivalent to holding the country into ransom a serves as a route to anarchy. His pronouncement to re-run for presidency has made serious discontent among the Burundians and neighbours. The disapproval by the Burundians including violence and sadly the loss of lives since his announcement indicates Burundians’ cry for help to Africa and to the international community.

According to regional and national legal framework, the Burundian president is limited to only two five-year terms by the country’s Constitution and the Arusha Peace Agreement, which ended a brutal and twelve-year civil war in 2005 that had ravaged the country causing thousands of orphans, thousands of widows and thousands of women to bear scars of rape and pain of losing their children and husbands. His assertion that he wants to re-run for presidency has caused significant socio-economic effect for the Burundians as they have fled to neighbouring countries.

According to Aljazeera, BBC and World Vision about twenty-thousand people have fled from the Capital Bunjumbura to other countries for refuge. The effect of his assertion is extremely negative on families and communities as it coerces them to lose their social affinity with the country of their ancestors. As families abandon their homes, children are losing their academic year which will never be recovered, and families are losing income, their properties and farmlands, and the country itself is losing revenue as violence continues to spread. The interesting development is that some Western Countries have signalled imposing calculated sanctions to compel Mister Pierre Nkurunziza to come to his soberness and relinquish power in the interest of the millions of his fellow-country people who stand to lose everything because of his obsession with power.

The modest way of handling this matter by the 6^th Session of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) is concerning because it seems like it anoints this practice of some presidents prolonging their stay in Office against the will of their people. Ideally, the 6^th Session of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) should have rebuked Mister Nkurunziza’s intention to re-run and give him time-frame by which to vacate Office.

Upon his pronouncement to candidate for Office, it is estimated that about 20 people have been killed in Burundi while questioning the rationale for his decision to avail himself for the third term. If PAP, COMESA and International partners speak with one voice of discouraging this ill-decision for wanting to cling into political power, there will be peace and ordinary Burundians will not be further compelled to escape their country in search of safety. Otherwise, the democratic trajectory that African countries are forging is likely to crumble as some incumbents will be lured to imitate their fellow brother which will result in continent sliding into flames becoming an international joke. The emphasis of this articles is that institutions which hold political and moral compass in society should speak ill of this practice and use all mechanisms in their disposal to advocate for his excommunication and sanction. The survival of Africa as an equal continent to others depend on how PAP, African Union and regional bodies particularly COMESA work together to persuade him acknowledge the reality that presidency is not imposed but is an honour bestowed on one by the countrymen to serve. It is against this backdrop that he should be informed and strongly warned of wanting to cling to power especially because his pronouncement is ravaging his country and likely to create tensions among the Burundians with hosts’ countries as the standard of living is high and not enough is there for the increased migrants.

Writer’s Profile

Moses Mncwabe is a researcher in Cape Town. He is passionate about community development issues including education and health.