{{Fear among Burundians is growing since Wednesday after three cabinet ministers resigned coinciding with the escape of the former Vice president.}}
The three ministers that quit government belong to the UPRONA political party including; District Development Minister Jean-Claude Ndihokubwayo, Communications Minister Leocadie Nihaza and Trade Minister Victoire Ndikumana.
UPRONA had a vice-president in government, but he was sacked by President Pierre Nkurunziza on Saturday after he opposed the party change.
The fallout brings to test an increasingly delicate power-sharing agreement between Burundi’s majority Hutu and minority Tutsi communities that have been struggling to reconcile after decades of conflict.
According to local media reports, the UPRONA members’ resignations from government follow an attempt by the ruling party, the CNDD-FDD, to force out UPRONA party chairman Charles Nditije ahead of elections scheduled for 2015, and replace him with a sympathiser.
However, Presidential spokesman Willy Nyamitwe has dismissed the idea that the president and his party “had played any role in the UPRONA crisis” conceding only that there had been “crises and misunderstandings”.
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