The Death of Magufuli and the Rise of Suluhu: The Significance of Suluhu’s Presidency in Tanzania and Beyond
Change of guard in Tanzania
President
Samia Suluhu Hassan is now the head of state of the United Republic of Tanzania
following the death of immediate
former President, John Pombe Magufuli, which was announced on Wednesday
17 March 2021. The death of Magufuli marks the first time Tanzanians are having
to confront the reality of the death of a sitting president in the country’s 60
years of independence. Whereas there are a few isolated alternative voices, led
by exiled opposition leader, Tundu Lissu, the news of the death of
Magufuli was largely greeted with deep shock throwing the
country into a mournful state.
Missing
president, rumours and big announcement
The
late Magufuli, nicknamed ‘the bulldozer’ due to
his modus operandi, was a polarising leader who has left a mixed legacy.
A leading Covid-19 denier,
Magufuli was both revered and reviled. His death came after days of speculation about
his health and whereabouts given that he had not been seen in public
for a while. While the government sought to assure the public that the
President was well, social media was awash with speculation about the
whereabouts of Magufuli with claims he had been flown to the Nairobi, Kenya for treatment.
Growing concerns about the President’s wellbeing saw Tanzania’s opposition leaders
demand immediate disclosure of his whereabouts.
The
government, however, maintained that the President was fine with the Prime
Minister, Kassim Majaliwa, blaming the rumours on hateful Tanzanians living
abroad (apparently in reference to exiled opposition leader, Tundu Lissu) further
stating that “Tanzanians should be at peace…your
president is around, healthy, working hard”. Furthermore,
against claims by Lissu that Magufulu succumbed to Covid-19 related complications,
the “authorities have insisted the
death was caused by heart complications”. Nevertheless, during the
announcement of his death, government eventually confirmed that Magufuli had
been ill for about two weeks prior to his death confirming Lissu’s earlier
allegations that revealed as much.
Understandably,
the government may have wanted to carefully manage the situation by giving
measured information to the public. Yet, the surging rumours and claims by the
opposition leader that the President was critically ill carry various lessons. The
first is the apparent impossibility to conceal certain information during this
age of social media and ubiquitous information. The second is the need to pay
attention to some of the originators of certain rumours. It is unlikely that
the person of the stature of Lissu, a former Presidential candidate, could
peddle baseless allegations about a matter as grave as the health of a President.
Last and even more damaging, is “a growing recognition that the
government cannot be trusted” which may proof difficult to regain in
the long term.
Smooth
Transition
On
Friday 19 March 2021, President Suluhu was sworn in as the 6th President of
Tanzania in a brief ceremony at Statehouse grounds in the country’s commercial hub
of Dar es Salaam. President Suluhu had been serving as the Vice President since
2015. Her swearing in is in accordance with Tanzania’s Constitution which, in article 37 (5),
clearly stipulates that “where the Office of President becomes vacant…the
Vice-President shall be sworn in and become the President for the unexpired
period of the term of five years…” President Suluhu will therefore, serve the
remainder of the current term which expires in 2025.
There
were concerns about what the
death of a sitting President in a formative democracy would mean. This is
especially the case given that challenges of transition during the death of a
sitting President have been witnessed elsewhere including in Tanzania’s
neighbouring Malawi. There appears
to have been tensions particularly with the ruling party, ‘Chama Cha Mapinduzi’
(CCM) over the succession question. The setup and the announcement of the death
of Magufuli by then Vice President Suluhu at the peripheral coastal town of
Tanga is arguably a pointer to a hurried decision to initiate the process. The clearest
indication of possible internal wrangles over transfer of power was during the
memorial service of President Magufuli held in the capital, Dodoma on Monday 22
March 2021. In her speech, delivered in Kiswahili, President Suluhu said: “for those who are doubtful
whether I can be President of Tanzania…I want to tell them that the person
standing here is President of the Republic of Tanzania…I want to repeat that
the person standing in front of you is the President of Tanzania…whose anatomy
is female”. This was a strongly-worded message seemingly directed at
those who doubted her ability to succeed President Magufuli.
Whereas
there may have been tensions over transfer of power, particularly within CCM,
it never boiled into the public domain. President Suluhu was sworn in within 24
hours of the death of Magufuli, in accordance with country’s constitution
marking a smooth transfer of power in Tanzania.
The
Significance of Suluhu’s Presidency
It
is too early to tell whether or not to expect a quick break from the polarising
style of the Magufuli’s ‘bulldozing’ leadership. However, there is a view that
President Suluhu “stands a chance to heal a polarised Tanzanian
society”. Fondly referred to as ‘mama’ (mother) – with a name
(Suluhu) that coincidentally means solution (in Kiswahili) and amity (from its
Arabic root ‘sulh’) – President Suluhu
strikes a contrast with Magufuli in terms of her personality and
leadership style. While Magufuli was impulsive, Suluhu is said to be thoughtful
and considered, with one of the Tanzanian politicians who have worked with her
describing President Suluhu as
“the most underrated politician in Tanzania”.
Even
as we wait to see how she shapes her policy; I argue that President Suluhu’s presidency
is significant in many ways.
Suluhu’s
presidency perpetuates a well-established tradition in Tanzania to rotate power
between Christian and Muslim communities and between the mainland and the
island of Zanzibar. While there is hardly any attention to this apparent power
rotation, it comes across as an unspoken consensus contributing to the low
salience of ethnic and religious tensions in Tanzania.
Secondly,
President Suluhu is now the only female President in Africa given that Ethiopia’s Sahle-Work Zewde’s presidency is ceremonial. Suluhu is
equally the first female President in the history of East Africa given that Burundi’s
Sylvie Kinigi, who is often cited as the first, only served as acting President from 27 October 1993 to 5
February 1994. The significance of a female President in Africa,
indeed the world, cannot be overemphasised. As Nanjala Nyabola observed on Twitter: “This
is important. It may not carry the entire weight of feminist progress - merely
having Samia Suluhu in office will not instantly fix everything - but it is
disingenuous to pretend that it is not important”.
Furthermore,
having a Muslim woman as President, sends a powerful positive image of Tanzania
to world. It reaffirms Tanzania’s high level of religious tolerance. Most
importantly, it portrays Tanzania’s political progress in terms of women’s ability
to rise to the top. This is especially important for the marginalised Muslim women across the world.
Suluhu’s Presidency is, therefore, a story of inspiration and hope for Tanzania
and beyond.
This article also appears on the EUIdeas website at: https://euideas.eui.eu/2021/03/24/the-death-of-magufuli-and-the-rise-of-suluhu-the-significance-of-suluhus-presidency-in-tanzania-and-beyond/
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