A declaration by President Pierre Nkurunziza of Burundi that he would run for a third presidential term in next month's elections despite a two-term limitation imposed by the country's constitution threatens to plunge the small land-locked nation into anarchy.
Burundians opposed to Mr Nkurunziza running for a third term have taken to the streets of Bujumbura in protest. Seven people have died from the clashes with security officers. The government's reaction to the protests has been to shut down social media, the country's independent media and to declare all demonstrators criminals, terrorists and enemies of the state.
Yet what is galling most is the collective silence from Mr Nkurunziza's peers in the East African Community. Of course little would be expected from most of them: not from Uganda's Yoweri Museveni who has twice tinkered with the constitution to extend his term limit; not from Tanzania's Jakaya Kikwete presiding over a hotly contested transitional election; not from Burundi's northern neighbour Rwanda whose President Paul Kagame seems keen on a term extension. It therefore falls on President Uhuru Kenyatta to speak up against what obviously is an attempt to halt the march of democracy in the region.
Predictably, the incumbent could be tempted to exploit the line that he needs to stay on to hold the country of two tribes (Hutu and Tutsi) together. That doesn't wash any more.
A former Belgian colony, Burundi has been under the spell of a civil war for most of its independence history. The election of Mr Nkurunziza in 2005 brought a semblance of peace. Today, Mr Nkurunziza's intransigence threatens to break that fragile peace. That should not be allowed.
He is not alone on the continent: a few have tried and succeeded to change the law to allow for a third and even fourth term. Some failed: Nigeria's Olesegun Obasanjo tried, so did Malawi's Bakili Muluzi and Zambia's Fredrick Chiluba. In Burkina Faso, Blaise Campaore tried in vain. He fled the country last year when things were threatening to get out of hand.
Joseph Kabila of DRC has made indications of intent to run for a third term when his term expires next year. Perhaps they draw lessons from the small fringe who have stayed on at the helm. The continent is awash with those who have fiddled with the law and succeeded or never held elections at all; Between Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, Paul Biya of Cameroon, Faure Gnassingbe of Togo, Denis Sassou-Ngueso in Congo Brazzaville, Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Robert Mugabe is a 160-year rule.
The common line used is; why relinquish leadership? The country needs me, they say. Yet studies have shown that countries that hold regular free and fair elections develop faster and their populations enjoy better living standards on average and are freer. These ones cannot be the exception. A disillusioned, embittered public is recipe for civil strife and political instability.
For example, despite an abundance of oil, South Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world because of political instability. The same zeal the East African Community showed in trying to bring peace to South Sudan should be applied in Burundi.
It is incumbent on Mr Kenyatta to impress it on Mr Nkurunziza that the law must be followed. He will be doing great service to Burundians and to Africa. Silence is not an option. Already, the army has signalled it will not support the president's bid.
He should heed the call and quit the race while he has time.
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