end of an era

Tanzania: The legacy of Magufuli and the beginning for Suluhu

By Morris Kiruga

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Posted on March 18, 2021 16:25

Tanzania President’s Death © A portrait of Tanzania’s former President John Magufuli is placed next to a book of condolences inside Tanzania’s High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya Thursday, March 18, 2021. (AP Photo)
A portrait of Tanzania’s former President John Magufuli is placed next to a book of condolences inside Tanzania’s High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya Thursday, March 18, 2021. (AP Photo)

The death of Tanzania’s President John Magufuli came at time when the country was feeling the pinch of its autocratic regime. But at the start of his first term, his hands-on management style, honed in his years as the country’s works minister, endeared him to a population that had long given up on the idea of visionary leadership like under Julius Nyerere in the decades after independence.

On many things, Magufuli was right. Projects could be done cheaper, and there was rampant waste and corruption within the government. He wrestled political power from a lethargic civil service and was unafraid to shame his own administrators on the ground for issues raised by citizens. He was, in fact, unafraid to shame anyone.

READ MORE How Magufuli has steered Tanzania towards an authoritarian one-party state

He was also confident even when he was wrong, and he was wrong a lot. The Covid-19 pandemic denialism remains the biggest blot on his era as president, but it is not the only time he was wrong. Under his regime, opposition leaders, activists, journalists and even mere citizens were shot, detained and harassed. He reintroduced and escalated a culture of terror and silence, one that will take a lot to undo.

Zanzibar’s influence

Samia Hassan Suluhu, long relegated to the ceremonial role that is the vice-presidency, is now the president of the country. In addition to

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