John Magufuli, a “bulldozer” president re-elected as chief of Tanzania

The opposition is looking for brand spanking new elections, the dismantling of the Electoral Fee and peaceable protests to problem the outcomes of Wednesday’s parliamentary elections. In response to the ultimate outcomes revealed on Friday, the CCM – the ruling celebration – gained virtually the entire 264 seats in parliament. John Magufuli, nicknamed Bulldozer, was re-elected to a different presidency with 84.39%.

“Bulldozer”, “Tinga tinga” in Kiswahili. A nickname that claims quite a bit in regards to the persona of this 61-year-old chemistry physician whose profession is basically political. He was a minister with out interruption for 20 years. Throughout this era, he inherited his nickname and adopted the successive portfolios of livestock and fishing, housing and even public works from 2010 to 2015.

It was there that he set himself up as a killer of corruption till he was elected to symbolize the CCM and succeed President Jakaya Kikwete. In 2015, John Magufuli gained the presidential election with 58% of the vote. He claims modest origins after which pursues in style reforms to restrict spending on his authorities and senior officers. It launches main jobs, tackles abuse of the mining sector and corrects the economic system.

However his direct, usually abrupt fashion, his tendency to disregard procedures and act on impulses rapidly raised issues a few potential authoritarian operation in one of the secure international locations in East Africa. Human rights defenders condemn an actual authoritarian flip. Monitoring opponents, lowering particular person freedoms, urgent the press … Throughout his tenure, Tanzania dropped 53 positions on this planet rankings of Reporters With out Borders, it’s at the moment 124th out of 180.

Like a bulldozer, “it crushes every little thing in its path: legal guidelines, human rights, every little thing,” explains Aikande Kwayu, a Tanzanian political analyst. For Magufuli, “the aim justifies the means,” mentioned Ringisai Chikohomero, a researcher on the Institute for Safety Research (ISS) in Pretoria. “For Magufuli, the state and the president have the final phrase, and he treats residents like youngsters.”

Fears for observers at the moment are that John Magufuli will as soon as once more be tempted to vary the structure to run for a 3rd time period in 2025.

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