Since May 2020 there have been no official corona cases in Tanzania.
The virus is "wiped out", as President Magufuli asserts.
The ruler denies the danger and relies on prayers instead of hygiene rules.
Dodoma - February 14th marked the first anniversary of the first corona case on the African continent.
What many observers had already suspected has now been confirmed: In Africa, significantly more people are apparently infected with the corona virus than officially known.
Corona in Tanzania: Country is "virus-free" - Covid-19 "wiped out"
Scientists from the US University of Boston examined hundreds of deaths in Zambia for traces of Covid-19.
According to this, every fifth deceased was infected with Sars-Cov-2.
Virtually none of them were tested for the coronavirus before death.
The results suggest an enormously high number of unreported cases, which is why the second largest continent is far from having the pandemic under control.
This is exactly what John Magufuli, President of Tanzania, claims.
The increasingly autocratic ruler has always relied on a lax approach to the corona virus.
There is no pandemic in the East African country.
"Tanzania is virus-free" and Covid-19 accordingly "wiped out", as Magufuli announced in July 2020.
It looks like the president is orienting himself towards other heads of state like Jair Bolsonaro or Alexander Lukashenko, who had also downplayed the effects of the pandemic.
Corona in Tanzania: Doctors are no longer allowed to report Covid cases - "it is very dangerous"
If you look at the worldwide infection numbers, at first glance the president actually seems to be right.
Only 509 corona cases out of a total population of just under 60 million inhabitants seem impressive, but are mainly due to the fact that Tanzania has not published any figures since May 2020 and thus for nine months now.
The people who die on-site in the overcrowded hospitals usually do so from “viral pneumonia.” As
fr.de
reports, doctors are no longer allowed to diagnose Covid-19 *.
The fact that the clinic staff comply with this state order is apparently also due to concerns about restrictions.
A doctor told the
editorial network in Germany
: “You would lose your job and the government could withdraw your license.
It's very dangerous."
+
There are hardly any corona requirements in Tanzania.
Accordingly, there are only a few rules for Magufulis events like here in August 2020, i.e. few masks, no distance.
© CCM / imago-images
Corona in Tanzania: President relies on prayers - "will pass if we submit to God"
The situation in the country is now becoming more and more precarious and observers fear a collapse of the already ailing Tanzanian health system.
Magufuli, on the other hand, wants to stick to his course and relies more on the power of prayers than the corona restrictions: "We have not locked ourselves in and we will not impose a lockdown on the country now, because I believe that it will pass if we submit to God, ”said the 61-year-old.
He thinks God wants to test the Tanzanians because they did something wrong.
Since there is no virus, there is no need for any vaccinations.
The president considers the vaccines produced in the West to be "dangerous" and advises not only prayers but also herbal and sauna cures in order to get any "breathing problems" under control.
The vaccinations would only cause damage anyway, because "there are some Tanzanians who have gone abroad to get a corona vaccination, and these are the ones who brought the disease here," Magufuli said in a recent TV speech .
"Don't trust these vaccines."
Corona in Tanzania: Sick Tanzanian minister causes criticism with press conference
Magufuli's finance minister Philip Mpango has meanwhile caused outrage with a public appearance.
To dispel rumors that he died of the corona virus, the seriously ill politician gave a press conference in front of the hospital in the capital, Dodoma, coughing and panting.
Around ten journalists witnessed the event in which Mpango did not wear a mask - in contrast to the doctors and nurses who stood behind him.
Mpango's voice was shaky as he expressed his condolences to the relatives of two prominent Tanzanian corona victims.
He did not say what he was suffering from.
Mpango's appearance caused outrage.
The opposition leader Tundu Lissu questioned the “intelligence” of the leading politicians.
"Who allowed this patient to cough on people instead of receiving hospital treatment?" He asked on Twitter.
Corona in Tanzania: criticism of the ruler Magufuli - "the virus knows no borders"
In the meantime, this course is not supported by everyone in the country.
Critical voices are growing, especially among the young population.
They find out about the pandemic on the Internet and take to the streets with mouth and nose protection - partly out of self-protection, partly as a protest action.
Increasingly loud criticism is even coming from the Catholic Church.
The Tanzanian bishops warned of a “new wave of infections” in January and spoke out against the trivialization of Magufuli.
Criticism has also come from the CDC, the Pan-African Health Authority. John Nkengasong, director of the CDC, recently warned explicitly against a negative attitude towards the vaccine and criticized the Tanzanian ruler. "Tanzania's stance is one that I hope will be revised quickly." A lack of cooperation makes the continental fight against corona difficult. “The virus knows no borders.”
(As with dpa) * Like Merkur.de, Fr.de is part of the Ippen-Digital editorial network