President John Magufuli of Tanzania is dead.
He died at age 61.
Samia Suluhu Hassan, vice-president of Tanzania, confirmed his death in a live television broadcast on Wednesday evening.
“The president died of heart complications at a hospital in Dar es Salaam, former capital of Tanzania,” she said.
Prior to his demise, there had been concerns over his whereabouts considering his absence from the public since late February.
Although there were reports at the time that he was sick, the Tanzanian government had dismissed rumours that the late president had been infected with the coronavirus.
Magufuli had repeatedly denied the existence of the virus in Tanzania, and in February 2021, he had called for prayers to defeat “respiratory diseases”.
Magufuli’s death comes four months after he was elected to a second term in office in November 2020.
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