By Andrew Irumba

Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza has reaffirmed that he will not contest in Next Year’s Election, despite scepticism from the opposition.

However, the ruling party is yet to name another candidate, less than six months from the polling day.

Pierre Nkurunziza, born December 18, 1963 is a Burundian politician who has been in power in Burundi since 2005.

He was the Chairman of the National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD), the ruling party, until he was elected as President of Burundi.

In 2015, Nkurunziza was controversially nominated by his party for a third term in office. Supporters and opponents of Nkurunziza disagreed as to whether it was legal for him to run again, and protests followed.

More than two months of anti-Nkurunziza protests, which were often violently repressed, left at least 100 dead. On 13 May 2015, a coup attempt against Nkurunziza occurred while he was out of the country; the coup leader, Godefroid Niyombare, claimed to have ousted Nkurunziza, although Nkurunziza loyalists disputed the claim.

Facing resistance from Nkurunziza loyalists, the coup collapsed and forces loyal to Nkurunziza appeared to be back in full control by 15 May. Independent media was shut down and many opponents fled, joining an exodus of more than 400,000 Burundians.

Amidst an opposition boycott, Nkurunziza was re-elected for a third term in the July 2015 presidential election. On June 7, 2018, Nkurunziza announced that he would not seek another term and step down when his current term ends in 2020.