Burundi holds parliamentary vote amid opposition boycott

It was a poll of many tales as Burundi took to picking their legislators through the ballot yesterday. At one end, President Nkuzunziza, whose insistance on running for a controversial re-election triggered off mass Burundian exodus in search for refuge across the borders, arrived to vote riding a bicycle. In the capital Bujumbira, a bomb exploded. Yet still, polling stations were deserted but the electoral commission said voter turnout was massive with four million registered voters casting their votes. Many polling stations were quiet although the electoral commission reported a massive turnout of the nearly four million registered voters, according to agencies. Another grenade exploded in the capital shortly after voting began yesterday in the latest example of the weeks of violence sparked by President Pierre Nkurunziza’s defiant bid for a third term. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for the elections to be delayed after the opposition said they would not take part, as Burundi faces its worst crisis since civil war ended nine years ago. The European Union condemned the decision to hold elections, saying polls “can only exacerbate the profound crisis.” Police patrolled the streets of Bujumbura, especially in opposition strongholds where the worst violence was seen during weeks of protests. Blasts Sounds of shooting and at least two explosions were heard Sunday night in the capital Bujumbura. A witness reported another blast in Bujumbura’s Musaga district yesterday morning. The private Iwacu newspaper website quoted police as saying two grenades exploded in Mayuyu district 25 kilometres southeast of the capital. A police spokesperson could not be reached for comment. A spate of such attacks in recent days has killed four people and wounded dozens. The European Union said Burundi’s decision to ignore UN and other international demands to delay voting further was a “serious matter” and could lead to more aid being withheld. The EU, European nations and the US have already halted some funds, including support for the elections. European states together fund about half Burundi’s annual budget. “The organization of legislative elections on June 29 without establishing the minimum requirements to ensure their credibility, transparency and inclusiveness, can only exacerbate the deep crisis in Burundi,” the European Union said. The African Union said on Sunday it would not send observers as it did not believe voting would be fair. The European Union also said it was withdrawing its observers. “Not being there means they are playing the game of the radical opposition who have boycotted the process,” presidential spokesman Gervais Abayeho said, adding UN observers were still monitoring the vote. Critics have said basic requirements for a fair poll mean ensuring the media operates freely and that the ruling party’s Imbonerakure youth wing and other groups are disarmed. The CNDD-FDD dismisses charges its youths are armed. Top officials flee Among the latest prominent figures to oppose the president’s plans is the speaker of the National Assembly, Pie Ntavyohanyuma. He announced on Sunday that he had left Burundi and would remain abroad indefinitely. “I was forced to quit the country due to the unrest caused by the president’s insistence to seek a third term bid which is illegal, which is unconstitutional,” Ntavyohanyuma told France 24 from Brussels. “I advised President Nkurunziza to drop his plan for a third term, but his answer was to threaten me, to humiliate me,” he added. This follows last week’s fleeing of second vice-president, Gervais Rufyikiri, under similar circumstances. The presidential election is scheduled for July 15.

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Burundi holds parliamentary vote amid opposition boycott