President John Magufuli Passed Away, Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan Will Be The First Female President

JAKARTA - President of Tanzania John Pombe Magufuli passed away at the age of 61. This sad news was conveyed by Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Wednesday 17 March, after more than two weeks of absence from the public which led to speculation about his health.

“Dear Tanzanians, it is very sad to announce that today is March 17, 2021, at around 6 p.m. We lost our brave leader, President John Magufuli, who died of heart disease at the Mzena hospital in Dar es Salaam where he is receiving treatment", said the vice president on state television station TBC.

Referring to the Tanzia Constitution, if the president dies in the middle of his tenure, the vice president who will be appointed as president will continue the remaining term of office.

Born on January 27, 1960, in the semi-autonomous region of Zanzibar, he is the 10th vice president of Tanzania. He was elected as vice president, after winning the 2015 elections with the late John Magufuli. In the 2020 Election, this pair won the Tanzania Election again.

Entering politics in 2000, he was elected as a member of the special envoy to the Zanzibar House of Representatives, before being appointed minister by President Amani Karume, reports Nairobi News.

In 2000-2005 as Minister of Youth Employment, Women and Child Development. Meanwhile, from 2005 to 2010, he served as Minister of Tourism, Trade, and Investment. Both are in Zanzibar.

From 2010 to 2015, he was a member of parliament from the Makunduchi Electoral District. As well, he has been the Minister of State in charge of Union Affairs at the Office of the Vice President of Tanzania since 2010.

His higher education degree was obtained from the Institute of Development Management (now Mzumbe University) in the field of public administration in 1986. He obtained his postgraduate degree in economics from the University of Manchester, UK in 1994.

Suluhu, who is married to Hafidh Ameir, a retired agricultural officer, has three sons and one daughter. Interestingly, the daughter Mwanu Hafidh Ameir now sits as a member of the Zanzibar Representatives Council, as if following in his footsteps.

If officially sworn in as president, it will be the first in Tanzania and the East African region. Previously, there was the name Sylvie Kinigi was believed to lead Burundi. However, she only served as an official from 27 October 1993 to 5 February 2004, replacing the dismissed Francois Ngeze. Because at that time she was still the Prime Minister of Burundi.

"The vice president must be sworn in. The constitution does not allow a vacancy after the official president dies, the next step is the inauguration of the vice president", opposition leader Zitto Kabwe told Reuters by telephone from Dar es Salaam on Thursday morning.