By Antonnate S. Mugodi.
Burundi. (News of The South) – Evariste Ndayishimiye has been sworn in as Burundi’s new president.
He took an oath at a colorful ceremony in the capital, Gitega, after the sudden death of his predecessor, Nkurunziza. Ndayishimiye made a pledge on his oath on Thursday to “devote all my force to defending the superior interests of the nation and ensure the national unity and cohesion of the Burundian people, peace and social justice.
After he signed the pledge, a 21-gun salute rang out before the seven members of the constitutional court.
The Catholic archbishop of Gitega, Simon Ntamwana said:
“Understand that you are the son of God and as such must bring peace among Burundians, you know how much we need it.
“Bring back to our country the refugees in the camps, bring back the intellectuals in exile so that they can take part in the development of our country, and renew ties with the international community so that they can help us develop.”
Ndayishimiye was sworn in before the people and this was the first time a Burundian president has been sworn in before the people and not the parliament.
At the ceremony there was a little sign of face masks and social distancing. It appeared there was no immediate change in the government’s belief that divine protection would largely suffice to prevent coronavirus, despite suspicions that the previous president died of Covid-19.
Comments
About Author
