As usual, Kenyans have the shortest political memory. Today, after Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu has shown clear signs of dictatorship, the same people — and I know that even our neighbours Tanzanians — are suddenly glorifying the late John’s against corruption, his undoings and overall ills far much outweigh all the benefits that Tanzanians reaped from his regime.
Pombe Magufuli, calling him a good president, a man Tanzania will remember. That can only be a sick joke.
Although Magufuli is widely known for his rigid stand, they have quickly forgotten that Magufuli was a far worse dictator than Samia Suluhu. Just because a few clips online show him laughing with the public or fixing potholes in Dar es Salaam, people have erased the fear, silence, and oppression that defined his rule.
I keep saying it, my other name is Mr. Truth, and I hate it when facts are challenged. So, let’s deal with the truth.
The same Opposition Leader, Tundu Lissu, whom Suluhu locked out of the ballot and thrown in Prison, was once a marked man under Magufuli. In 2017, Lissu survived an assassination attempt widely believed to have been ordered by Magufuli himself.
He was sprayed with bullets outside his home in Dodoma, rushed to Nairobi for emergency treatment, and later fled into exile in Belgium, where he lived in constant fear of John Pombe Magufuli.
Actually, if one can vividly recall, somewhere in between 2015–2021, Magufuli was widely characterized by authoritarian practices. Globally reputed bodies like Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International consistently downgraded Tanzania’s democracy rankings during his rule.
The ban on opposition rallies and tight control over civil society became an in-thing in his leadership. His argument that politics should only be conducted during election seasons was also seen to only meant to silence dissenting views.
That was Magufuli’s Tanzania, a country where speaking your mind could get you jailed, beaten, or worse. Opposition leaders were hunted down, activists vanished, and journalists disappeared without a trace. Many fled the country to save their lives.
When Magufuli took power in 2015, his first major political order was to ban opposition rallies. He claimed politics should only happen during election season, yet his own ruling party, CCM, held meetings all year round. It was dictatorship disguised as discipline.
The 2020 general election, where he “won” with over 80% of the vote, was a complete sham. Opposition agents were arrested, rallies banned, and results predetermined. The violence and intimidation were the same as what Samia Suluhu has done.
And when it comes to media freedom, Magufuli’s record was a stain on democracy. Newspapers like Mawio, The Citizen, and Tanzania Daima were banned or silenced. Journalists were arrested for doing their job. Even social media users were tracked, arrested, and made to disappear under draconian cyber laws.
Let’s not lie to ourselves, Magufuli ruled Tanzania with fear. He was not a hero of the people; he was a man obsessed with control.
The things he did to that country, to say the least, were despicable.
