Former President of Burundi Pierre Nkurunziza was laid to rest on Friday in Gitega, the administrative capital of Burundi. Thousands of Burundians took to the streets of Gitega as the body of Nkurunziza was escorted under heavy security for a state funeral after his sudden death earlier this month. Nkurunziza was President of Burundi for 15 years. He died at the age of 55 with the government saying his death was due to heart failure. President Paul Kagame on June 13, ordered that the National Flag on Rwandan territory fly at half-mast in solidarity with Burundi. The funeral ceremonies began with a homage from his wife, Denise Bucumi Nkurunziza, his children and other officials in the central city of Karuzi where he died on June 8. Nkurunzizas body was then driven to a stadium in Gitega where a ceremony to see him off took place. It brought together dignitaries from Tanzania, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, among others. Nkurunziza died shortly after an election won by Evariste Ndayishimiye, who was sworn in last week. Friday was declared a national holiday for the funeral, and school children in uniform, and citizens lined the roads waiting for the funeral convoy to pass. The stadium in Gitega where the funeral ceremony was held was packed with citizens from across the country, all dressed in white at the request of authorities. Losing a person you loved in a short period is not easy, but the Lord blessed us with strength to go through these hard times, his wife remarked. Tanzanias Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa and the first lady of Zambia were present at the ceremony. President Evariste Ndayishimiye said Nkurunziza left a legacy that will drive him and the people of Burundi. We wont disappoint you. We shall follow your footsteps, he told thousands of Burundians in Gitega. Nkurunziza was buried at a monument recently built in Gitega at the site of another structure which was to be dedicated to victims of the countrys various crises over the years, but was never inaugurated.
