Lawlessness in Burundi’s commercial city Bujumbura has nurtured multiple forms of criminality making it very dangerous to live in.
Long queus of people waiting for buses can be seen in downtown Bujumbura early mornings and late evening as people leave work places for home.
The fuel shortage that has hit this isolated country for many months has also led to shortage of buses due to rising costs of operation.
The deteriorating economy has forced a surge in theft. Thieves take advantage to steal from passengers queuing waiting for buses especially in the evening.
During the fuel shortage, public transport buses are rare in the parking lots serving different urban areas.
When a bus arrives, people jostle to get in first. An ideal time for thieves to open passenger bags. Even while waiting, thieves manage to steal cell phones from passengers with little distraction.
For example one passenger who only identified herself as Bella said she has already been a victim.
“I was on the line with the others waiting for the bus to arrive. I got a call from a friend and I picked up. When the call ended, I wanted to respond to a message then a gentleman came in front of me. He quickly grabbed my cell phone and fled,” she says.
She added that she could not identify him with “the crowd of people who were in the parking lot. “People even pretended to try to help her get the phone back by running after the thief.
“In the end, we noticed that they rather belong to the group of this type of bandits since they did not return to the parking lot at least immediately,” she said.
“I am taking this opportunity to appeal to the Police to strengthen security in these queues because several people have already been robbed there,” she said.
She blamed the government on the rising fuel shortage in the country and demanded intervention to fix the situation and find appropriate solutions.
Another victim named Denis told local press that “On these lines, I am obliged to hold my possessions tightly to my chest. As you see, there are several people. Under these conditions, we cannot know who is a thief and who is not. Even the bus conductors often advise us to hold our belongings well.”
Denis just like Bella are asking the Burundian security services to ensure more security in the parking lots, especially during the evening hours between 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. “This is where there is more darkness and thieves take great advantage of it,” says Denis.
