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Bujumbura — Burundi’s electoral commission chief says results will be announced today for the presidential election, a poll that took place amid unrest over President Pierre Nkurunziza’s efforts to win a third term that opponents charge is unconstitutional. Electoral commission head Pierre-Claver Ndayicariye said on Wednesday that between 72 percent and 80 percent of Burundi’s 3.8 million voters cast their ballots.
Nkurunziza is expected to win after some opposition groups boycotted the poll. Main opposition figure Agathon Rwasa said his attempts to campaign had been frustrated by the government.
Charles Nditije, whose UPRONA party is part of the coalition supporting Rwasa’s bid for presidency, says the coalition will reject the outcome of the election.
Burundi’s capital has been rocked with violence since April when it was announced Nkurunziza would stand for another term.
Meanwhile, Nkurunziza would not oppose forming a national unity government after an election boycotted by the opposition but if he wins a third term would not cut it short, a presidential official said on Wednesday.
“A government of national unity is not a problem for Pierre Nkurunziza, we’re ready to do so,” Willy Nyamitwe, adviser to Nkurunziza, said after a leading opposition figure called for such a step. But he rejected the idea of cutting short any new five-year mandate as “impossible”.
In a related incident Burundi security forces crushed anti-government demonstrations, including shooting protesters running away from them, to silence those opposed to Nkurunziza bid for a third-term, a rights group said yesterday.
“Burundian authorities sought not just to disperse demonstrations, but to punish protesters for expressing their political views,” Amnesty International said in a report, titled “Braving Bullets”. “They used excessive and disproportionate force, including lethal force, against protesters, at times shooting unarmed protesters running away from them,” added the report released in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.
Anti-Nkurunziza protests have been violently repressed, leaving at least 100 people dead since late April.
Online Reporter