Dodoma-Sana
The Tanzanian presidency today announced the death of President John Magufuli, at the age of 61, after a two-week absence from public life due to illness.
Reuters reported that Vice President Samia Hassan announced in a statement broadcast on state television the news of the president’s death “in Mazina Hospital in Dar Al-Salam, where he was receiving treatment.
Magufuli has not appeared in public since February 27, sparking rumors of his COVID-19 infection.
According to the Tanzanian constitution, Samia Hassan is supposed to assume the presidency for the rest of the late Majufuli state of five years, which he started last year after winning a second term.
And by that, she will become the first female head of state in the eastern African continent.