Apostle Isidore Mbayahaga, who is now closely aligned with the Burundian government, has called on citizens of the country to contribute funds to purchase a Sukhoi-57 fighter jet for the Burundian National Defense Forces (FDNB).
The preacher made this statement in a recent interview with a Burundian-based YouTube channel.
In the interview, he was asked about the possibility of the M23 rebel group from the Democratic Republic of Congo launching attacks on Burundi in the near future. He responded that the group poses no real threat to the country.
Mbayahaga went further to urge Burundians to donate to the military so it could buy a Su-57 fighter jet to defend the nation.
He said: “If all Burundians come together and each household contributes 10,000 or 20,000 Burundian francs to support our military so we can buy a Sukhoi-57 fighter jet to guard our borders, we could afford it.”
He continued: “I will request permission so we can purchase it, because we have enemies. I know the others don’t have it. I want to ask for the price of that aircraft. If we go that route, we could buy three jets in a year. I believe to maintain peace and security in our country, this plane must be purchased. It’s not too expensive.”
Sukhoi-57 jets are manufactured by the Sukhoi company in Russia. They are advanced fifth-generation fighter aircraft and among the most modern built by the country.
So far, no country other than Russia owns these jets, although India and Algeria are reportedly planning to acquire them. Their price is estimated to range between $80 million and $110 million.
Mbayahaga is advocating for Burundi to purchase these jets at a time when the country doesn’t even own a single passenger aircraft.
