Burundi:Things Fall Apart As Former Prime Minister Bunyoni On The Run

By Maniraguha Ferdinand [caption id="attachment_105870" align="alignnone" width="1000"] It is alleged that Bunyoni has fled Burundi[/caption] Alain Guillaume Bunyoni, former Prime Minister and one of Burundian wealthiest politicians has allegedly fled the country before security organs came to ransack his mansions in the city of  Bujumbura. The Burundian Government said that it doesn’t know his whereabouts but assured population to do whatever it takes to arrest him. It is being rumoured that Bunyoni who once led Burundian police, has fled to neighboring Tanzania. Earlier in  the week, the Burundian Prosecutor General ordered security personnel to ransack Bunyoni’s mansions in Bujumbura and arrest him. They didn’t find him there. Spokesperson for Burundian Prosecution, Martin Niteretse told journalists on Wednesday 19^th April that Bunyoni is being wanted by judicial institutions, without naming the nature of alleged crimes. Local newspapers say that Bunyoni had been tipped and fled before security organs arrived. Some say that he had good relations with dissidents living abroad, who lead anti campaign propaganda against Ndayishimiye’s government. Bunyoni who was a strongman during former President Pierre Nkurunziza’s tenure, has never been in good terms with current President Evariste Ndayishimiye. In September 2022, President Evariste Ndayishimiye replaced Allain Guillaume Bunyoni from the post of Prime Minister after days of rift between the two strongmen. It happened three days after Ndayishimiye had warned Bunyoni that if he tries to overthrow the regime, he would bear the consequences. Bunyoni was considered as a heir to the presidential office during Nkurunziza’s tenure but it changed in 2020 when Nkurunziza endorsed Ndayishimiye as his successor from the same CNDD FDD Party.