Tanzania’s recent prominent deaths

Mkapa died on July 23, 2020

By Derrick Bacha, Nairobi News

Tanzania President John Magufuli’s death is the latest in a string of prominent deaths to rock the East African country in the past year.

Magufuli has buried four prominent personalities that included former President Benjamin Mkapa.

Born in 1938 Mkapa, served as the third president of Tanzania between 1995 to 2005 and Magufuli announced Mkapa’s death on July 23, 2020.

The Makerere University graduate was 81 at the time of his death and he passed on in a hospital in Dar es Salaam, where he’d been receiving treatment.

He died a few months after visiting Kenya to attend former president Daniel Moi’s funeral. He is said to have succumbed to heart-related complications.

Another politician was Seif Hamad, who was until his death the first vice-president of Zanzibar.

He died on February 17, barely three months after assuming office having previously served as the 2nd chief minister of Zanzibar.

Hamad was hospitalized in January and it was reported he had, alongside his wife and aides tested positive for COVID-19 and he died at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam. He was 77 years old.

John Kijazi was until his death the chief secretary in President Magufuli’s administration and he also died on February 17 at the age of 65 at the Benjamin Mkapa Hospital in Dodoma where he was receiving treatment. The cause of his illness was not made public.

Professor Benno Ndulu — former Governor of the Bank of Tanzania — died on February 22, 2021 at the age of 71 while receiving treatment at the Hubert Kairuki Memorial Hospital in Dar es salaam.

According to his personal assistant Msafiri Nampesya, professor Ndulu was admitted for 10 days before he died.

Despite him not being a politician, he was one of the exceptional Tanzanians who shone his light in Tanzania and beyond its borders.

He used his knowledge and expertise to influence economic policy nationally, regionally, and internationally.

Meanwhile, Malawi’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement that President Chakwera is expected fly to Tanzania on Monday, March 22 to attend the State Funeral of the fallen Magufuli.

A requiem mass was held at St Peter’s Catholic Church in Dar es Salaam on Saturday before the body was taken to Uhuru Stadium for the public in Dar es Salaam to bid their farewell.

According to media reports, Magufuli’s body will then be moved to Dodoma on March 22 and to Mwanza on March 23 for locals to bid goodbye.

Thereafter, the body will be moved to his ancestral home in Chato for the final interment on Thursday, March 25 — the new President Samia Suluhu is quoted as saying.