Tanzania has announced it will hold two weeks of mourning following the death of its former President, John Pombe Magufuli.
The government of Tanzania has announced that the country will hold two weeks of mourning following the death of its former President John Pombe Magufuli.
Magufuli succumbed to heart failure on Wednesday night.
In a statement released by the country’s Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan, the 61-year-old died of a “heart condition” known as chronic atrial fibrillation characterised by an abnormal heartbeat, which he had suffered from for a decade, at a hospital in Dar es Salaam.
Magufuli, popularly nicknamed the “Bulldozer”, had been missing from public view for almost three weeks, fuelling wild rumours of his ill health, with opposition leaders claiming he had contracted the virus.
“It is with deep regret that I inform you that today on the 17th of March, 2021 at 6:00 pm we lost our brave leader, the President of the Republic of Tanzania, John Pombe Magufuli,” said vice-president Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Magufulu had first been briefly admitted to the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute on March 6, but was subsequently discharged, Hassan said.
She added that Magufuli had again felt unwell and was on March 14 rushed to the hospital, this time to the Emilio Mzena Memorial Hospital in Dar es Salaam.
Magufuli had last appeared in public on February 27, and the fervent Catholic had missed three Sunday services, sparking concern.
Earlier, opposition leader Tundu Lissu who is exiled in Belgium reported that president Magufuli had contracted Covid-19 which had exacerbated his existing health conditions.
Who was Magufuli?
John Pombe Joseph Magufuli (29 October 1959 – 17 March 2021) was a Tanzanian born and politician who served as the fifth President of Tanzania from 2015 until his death in 2021.
He served as Minister of Works, Transport and Communications from 2000 to 2005 and 2010 to 2015 and was chairman of the Southern African Development Community from 2019 to 2020.
Magufulu was first elected as a Member of Parliament in 1995. He served in the Cabinet of Tanzania as Deputy Minister of Works between 1995 and 2000, Minister of Works from 2000 to 2005.
He was the Minister of Lands and Human Settlement from 2006 to 2008, Minister of Livestock and Fisheries from 2008 to 2010, and Minister of Works for a second time from 2010 to 2015.
In 2015, Magufuli won the presidential elections and was sworn in as President of Tanzania for the first time in his career. At the time of his death, he was serving his second term after he was reelected in 2020.
