In March, Tanzania lost its president, John Magufuli to a mysterious illness and was buried in his ancestral village (northwest of Tanzania) before being succeeded by Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Though, Tanzania’s late president John Magufuli lived as if Covid-19 was never declared a pandemic. He was one president never to be caught wearing a face mask, and at some point considered a Covid-19 sceptic.
Taking a different approach, Tanzania’s new president, Samia Suluhu Hassan wears a face mask not for a mysterious disease but one which has been identified and declared a pandemic. She was seen on Friday in her first public event in Kenya – leading by example in her face mask.
Samia Suluhu Hassan’s Approach To COVID-19
The new president has been greatly respected and praised for also wearing face mask behind closed doors in her home.
The event in the East Africa nation is set to last for two days and Ms Samia has since been in her face mask outside her country.
At the event in Dar Es Salaam , she addressed an audience of more than 800 elders from across the country:
“We apologise, our lifestyle has changed, we have come here today in face masks and this is because the elderly are at a higher risk of contracting this disease, so we have to protect them,” President Samia said.
Using metaphors in a respectable manner, she emphasized on mask wearing as she compared it to a herder muzzling a goat to stop eating crops.
The woman is bold and prepared. Walls in Tanzania echo how competent of a president she is. Since coming to power, she is putting in place healthy measures forming a committee of professionals to advise her on the status of Covid-19 in the country and the necessary steps to take in protecting the people.
By Elijah Christopher
Elijah Christopher is a journalist at A New Touch Of Africa, is also a creative writer, a poet, and an IT enthusiast. He contributed to the collaborative poem written in celebration of Edwin Morgan Centenary, the first Glasgow poet laureate and Scottish national poet from the University of Glasgow. He loves meeting people and learning about new places, cultures, events, and lifestyles.
