Mr Mahmoud, who addressed the press on Wednesday in Bujumbura after being received by the vice-president, Gabriel Ntisezerana, declared that he would always plead for the Burundian cause and expressed the wish that the country becomes 'a model of peace, reconciliation and stability for all Africans".
In a surprise move, the government in Bujumbura at the end of December 2009 asked the United Nations Secretary General to recall the Tunisian diplomat.
The official reason advanced was that the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Bureau in Burundi (BINUB) led for the past three years by Mr Mahmoud was going to change and it was out of the question to maintain the same person at the helm of affairs.
Many voices rose in Burundian political circles to denounce the blunt dismissal of a UN diplomat known to be 'wise, conciliatory and courteous' but in vain.
Bujumbura - Pana 28/01/2010
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