Tanzanian opposition demands answers on president's health

Tanzanian opposition politicians are raising questions about the health of John Magufuli, the country’s coronavirus-skeptic president who has not been seen in public for more than a week.

The 61-year-old Magufuli insisted for months that COVID-19 had been fended off by prayer, refusing measures such as masks and lockdowns. However, last month conceded it was still circulating after the vice president of semi-autonomous Zanzibar was revealed to have died of the virus.

“We’re informed when [former President Jakaya] Kikwete had prostate surgery. We’re told when [former President Benjamin] Mkapa went for hip replacement … What’s it with Magufuli that we don’t deserve to know?” opposition leader Tundu Lissu wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper reported that “an African leader” from a country that has refused face masks and public health measures had been admitted to the Nairobi Hospital.