BUJUMBURA June 27th (ABP) – The President of the Republic of Burundi, Evariste Ndayishimiye, has recommended that participants in the crusade apply what they have learned. He spoke this on June 24, 2023, on the fourth and last day of the national thanksgiving prayer on the occasion of the 3rd anniversary of his accession to power.
Mr. Ndayishimiye said he was astonished that crusades had been organized since the power of his predecessor, the late Pierre Nkurunziza, and that there was no change in behavior among certain leaders who participated in them, therefore leaving what they learned on the site.
The closing day of the crusade was first enlivened by a teaching by the Reverend Pastor Pierre Claver Ndayisenga of the Free Methodist Church. He indicated that people always have things that separate them and it is the law of nature, “we must know that what separates us does not matter compared to what unites us and the difference is a richness”.
He pointed out that where there is unity, people help one another and Burundians must know that those who share roots have the same disappearance, he explained. He called on Burundians to share donations, to love one another, to abide by the law, not to oppose authority because whoever dares will suffer the rigors of the law. He called on everyone to be responsible in the service and in the family without forgetting to implore God who does everything.
Pastor Ndayisenga called on Burundians and especially leaders to welcome change, since it comes from the will of God. Thus, he stressed: “Obey God and learn to live from what you have”. He invited them to avoid jealousy and comparing themselves to others, but to work towards reaching their goals. He ended his teachings by calling on them to reduce as much as possible those who can mislead them.
For his part, President Ndayishimiye has said that most Burundians are proud of lies. He called on leaders to promote the truth. According to President Ndayishimiye, the problem of Burundians is not linked to poverty because they have enough to eat, the problem is laziness.
The little things create conflicts, the Head of State added, pointing out that families like the Bajiji, the Bahanza, the Banyakarama, … have existed since and this should constitute a national pride, but the bad leadership causes problems in the country on basis of these.
He urged leaders to accept advice, ask for advice and even the President of the Republic needs advisers. He ended his teaching by asking the magistrates to change their behavior and serve well people suffer from injustice, in order to relieve them.
The thanksgiving crusade on the occasion of the celebration of the 3rd anniversary of the accession to power of the President of the Republic was closed by the speech of the Head of State.
Indeed, President Ndayishimiye pointed out that the Almighty has done good things for Burundi and that the latter has gone through a difficult period but God has straightened it out. He thanked all the participants in this four-day crusade and implored God to continue to protect him during the new phase he has begun in ruling the country.
According to Mr. Ndayishimiye, “we are going to start a new phase, Burundians are called upon to prepare for it. We will cultivate and produce because God has blessed our country”.
The Head of State thanked the leaders for their participation, the team that prepared the crusade, the administration, the defense and security forces, the faith leaders, all the choirs who sang well to enhance the celebration.
As a way of thanking the presidential family, people of Bujumbura gave him various gifts, consisting of nine cows, sheep, many baskets of food, fish from Lake Tanganyika and bunches of plantains.