UPDATE:
NAIROBI and DAR ES SALAAM (CNS): Tanzanian president, John Magufuli, died of heart-related complications on March 17 at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He was 61.
The country’s vice pesident, Samia Suluhu, announced Magufuli’s death in a televised statement and ordered a 14-day mourning period, during which flags will fly at half-staff. The announcement ended weeks of speculation on the whereabouts and the health of the leader. He is the first Tanzanian president to die in office.
Suluhu, a Muslim woman from Zanzibar, will take over the presidency for the rest of his five-year term.
Father Chesco Peter Msaga, director of communications at the Tanzania Episcopal Conference, said: “We mourn the passing on of our president. He was a blessing to people of Tanzania, and we pray that God continues blessing the country’s leaders.”
“Although he differed with the church on the science related to the pandemic, there were no spiritual differences. He was not against the church,” said Father Msaga.
Magufuli had downplayed the severity of the Covid-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), keeping the country open while others announced curfews and lockdowns. Last June, he declared the country was free of the virus, attributing the result to Christian and Muslim prayers.
…on several occasions, Magufuli, who was a Catholic, urged Tanzanians to focus defeating the pandemic with prayer alone, referring to the virus as demonic amid warnings that the nation is seeing a deadly resurgence in infections.
Earlier this year, Catholic bishops publicly differed with him, urging the people to protect themselves against the virus by observing the health measures, including hand-washing, social distancing and wearing of masks with Archbishop Jude Thaddeus Ruwa’ichi of Dar es Salaam, saying was time for Tanzania to accept that Covid-19 exists, noting that denying the truth has led to loss of lives and a lot of people getting sick.
“Covid-19 is still with us and we should stop being careless,” Archbishop Ruwa’ichi said, adding, “Let us protect ourselves and stop spreading the virus. People should seriously start wearing face masks and washing hands with soap and water.”
Since the start of the pandemic a year ago, Tanzania’s authorities have repeatedly downplayed the danger and urged citizens to ignore preventative measures necessary to keep the virus from spreading.
Instead, on several occasions, Magufuli, who was a Catholic, urged Tanzanians to focus defeating the pandemic with prayer alone, referring to the virus as demonic amid warnings that the nation is seeing a deadly resurgence in infections.
“Let’s pray and fast for three days; I am sure we will win again,” Magufuli told mourners at a funeral for John Kijazi, the chief secretary who died from Covid-19 on February 17, adding, “May I ask religious leaders, just as you have been doing, keep insisting in prayers. We will win. We won last year. We will win this year and years to come.”
However, with the death to Covid-19 of Seif Sharif Hamad, first vice president of Zanzibar, on the same day, as well as the loss of more than 10 prominent Tanzanians, the president finally acknowledged that the country has a Covid-19 problem, ABC News reported.
Magufuli told people to take precautions and even wear facemasks—but only locally made ones. ABC News reported that he has expressed wariness about foreign-made goods, including Covid-19 vaccines.
Magufuli told people to take precautions and even wear facemasks—but only locally made ones. ABC News reported that he has expressed wariness about foreign-made goods, including Covid-19 vaccines.
The country of nearly 60 million people has not published data on the number of coronavirus cases since April.
In early March, Father Charles Kitima, general secretary of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference, announced that more than 60 nuns, 25 priests and two elders of the laity had died with two months of various causes, including respiratory problems.
‘I want to urge all of us to accept the reality of the disease and live by following the indications provided by the experts and by those who know how to contain the disease’
Archbishop Gervas Nyaisonga
Father Kitima urged Tanzanians to follow all health precautions such as wearing masks, keeping social distance, washing hands with soap and sanitising, warning that the Covid-19 threat was still alive in the country.
“Priests are dying and sisters are dying, but this number within two months has shocked us, especially considering the government has strengthened better health systems,” Father Kitima said in statement.
Archbishop Gervas Nyaisonga, president of bishops’ conference, said prevention was better than cure and rallied citizens to fight the pandemic.
“All of us have a responsibility to avoid the danger of contagion and therefore we should protect ourselves from the virus,” Archbishop Nyaisonga said.
“I want to urge all of us to accept the reality of the disease and live by following the indications provided by the experts and by those who know how to contain the disease,” he said.
“There’s coronavirus here because people are falling ill and dying from respiratory disease,” said one young woman who owns a small hotel in Kibamba, on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam.
“I’m happy the Church is speaking about it and urging the government to protect us. Their voice is very important at the time the country is losing a lot of people (to) the virus.”
The World Health Organisation has expressed concern over the government’s unwillingness to publish statistics on Covid-19 cases. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, head of the WHO, urged Tanzania’s government to start releasing infection numbers and share data.
“This situation remains very concerning,” Ghebreyesus said.
