DAR EA SALAAM: Tanzania was in mourning on Thursday over the sudden death of President John Magufuli, who leaves behind a divided legacy and a question mark over his fatal illness.
Flags flew at half-mast as the country began a 14-day mourning period after Vice-President Samia Suluhu Hassan announced Magufuli had died on Wednesday of a “heart condition” in a hospital in Dar es Salaam.
Under Tanzania’s constitution, Hassan should become the country’s first female president and will finish Magufuli’s five-year term, ruling until 2025.
The government had previously denied Magufuli was ill as pressure mounted to explain his almost three-week absence from public view, which sparked rumours he was seeking treatment abroad for coronavirus.
Tanzania’s ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party told journalists there would be a special meeting of its central committee on Saturday, as the country awaits news on the inauguration of the new president and the funeral arrangements.
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, current head of the East African Community bloc, said Africa had lost an “illustrious” leader and ordered a seven-day period of mourning in Kenya and for flags to fly at half-mast in the region.
The African Union, regional leaders, Britain and the United States also sent condolences.
“We hope that Tanzania can move forward on a democratic and prosperous path,” the US State Department said in a statement.
Tanzania, a country of 58 million known for its wildlife-rich parks and mining wealth, has long been seen as a haven of stability in an otherwise volatile neighbourhood.
Magufuli was first elected in 2015 as a corruption-busting man of the people, endearing him to a population weary of graft scandals, and who loved his no-nonsense attitude. — AFP
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