While Ethiopia decided to delay its election this year due to the pandemic, Burundi has pushed forward with the vote at all costs, with heaving crowds of thousands attending political rallies, with only buckets of water and soap available as a nod to the virus.
Burundi has not taken any measures to confine or limit the movement of the population, unlike most other countries in the region with the exception of Tanzania - where many fear the virus is also spreading out of control.
God loves Burundi and if there are people who have tested positive, it is so that God may manifest his power in Burundi," said General Evariste Ndayishimiye, the presidential candidate for the ruling CNDD-FDD party.
The UN and rights organisations attribute much of the violence to the Imbonerakure, members of the ruling party's youth wing which the UN describes as a militia, as well as the feared national intelligence agency which answers directly to the president, the police, and to a lesser extent the army.
In the eyes of the Hutu, who make up 85% of the population, Rwasa has as much legitimacy as a presidential candidate as the leaders of the other rebel group, now the ruling party.
