Burundi : Daniel Gélase Ndabirabe reappointed as Speaker of the National Assembly despite controversies

SOS Médias Burundi

Bujumbura, Thursday, July 31, 2025 – Daniel Gélase Ndabirabe was reappointed on Thursday as Speaker of the National Assembly of Burundi. The election was held in the Kigobe Chamber, in the northern commercial city of Bujumbura, in the presence of 111 deputies, 109 of whom voted in his favor for a new five-year term.

Already Speaker of this institution since 2020, he is thus beginning a second term as Speaker of the lower house of parliament. His re-election comes in a tense political context, marked by controversies surrounding his decisions and speeches deemed extreme.

A renewed bureau under the control of the ruling party

During this session, the Assembly’s bureau was also completed :

Fabrice Nkurunziza was elected First Vice-Speaker with 110 votes;

Boussesia Nkezimana received unanimous support from the 111 deputies for the position of Second Vice-Speaker.

The election had already been postponed twice, the first attempt being to July 28, 2025, due to the revision of the Assembly’s rules of procedure.

Accusations of forced exile and institutional control

Ndabirabe’s reappointment is not unanimous. He is accused of recently dismissing two commissioners from the highly controversial Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CVR), suspecting them of collaboration with Rwanda.
These accusations, described by some observers as “political trials,” have driven the two commissioners into exile.

Ndabirabe is also embroiled in the controversy surrounding the new composition of the National Independent Human Rights Commission (CNIDH), which he considers subservient to the government and lacking human rights expertise.
Its former president, Sixte Vigny Nimuraba, also fled the country and has been living in exile for several months.

A loyalist to President Neva and the CNDD-FDD

Daniel Gélase Ndabirabe is one of the closest associates of President Évariste Ndayishimiye, nicknamed “Neva.”
He sits on the Council of Elders of the CNDD-FDD, the former Hutu rebellion that has been in power in Burundi for two decades, thanks to the Arusha Peace Agreement signed in August 2000.

A leader with controversial statements

The Speaker of the National Assembly is known for his radical remarks. He recently called for “cutting off the hands” of traders accused of hiding fuel and advocated for the reintroduction of the death penalty for those involved in smuggling, even though the fuel crisis has lasted for nearly 56 months.

A reappointment that consolidates the ruling party’s power

Despite these controversies, the parliamentary majority has renewed its confidence in him.
This reappointment further strengthens the CNDD-FDD’s influence in an increasingly closed Burundian political landscape, where the opposition struggles to be heard and institutions are increasingly perceived as aligned with the interests of the ruling power.