Tanzanian President, John Pombe Magufuli, nicknamed ‘the Bulldozer’, has died at 61, the government announced on Wednesday.
In a televised address, Tanzania vice-president, Samia Suluhu Hassan revealed that Magufuli had died of heart complications, BBC reports.
Hassan said Magufuli was hospitalised on March 6 at Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute.
There were indications he had earlier been hospitalized over coronavirus related complications.
Born on October 29, 1959, Magufuli earned his master’s and doctorate degrees from the University of Dar es Salaam in 1994 and 2009, respectively.
After a short stint of teaching at Sengerema Secondary School and later working as an industrial chemist, Magufuli went into politics under the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party.
He was elected a member of parliament in 1995 and that same year appointed deputy minister of works, receiving the title of minister in 2000.
In 2010, he gained popularity after he was appointed Tanzania’s minister for works and transportation for the second time. His bullish leadership style and fight against graft in the road construction industry was endearing for Tanzanians, who later nicknamed him “the bulldozer.”
He ran as president in 2015 and won 58% of the vote, defeating Edward Lowassa of the Chadema opposition party. In 2020, he was re-elected in a vote — a win that opposition presidential candidate Tundu Lissu decried as fraudulent.
As at Wednesday, Tanzania has 509 coronavirus cases, 183 recoveries and 21 deaths.
