Kassim Majaliwa was surprised that people questioned the president’s whereabouts and added that the leader was “well and continues with his daily activities,” while speaking during a prayer session on Friday at a mosque in the Njombe region, according to the state chain Tanzania. Broadcasting Corporation.
Unconfirmed reports have surfaced in regional media suggesting that the leader had been admitted to Nairobi Hospital by Covid-19 this week. CNN has not been able to confirm the president’s status.
Throughout the pandemic, Magufuli had downplayed his dangers, previously claiming that Tanzania had defeated Covid-19 through prayer and insisting that the virus was not a threat to the East African nation. He has questioned the safety of foreign vaccines against Covid-19 and has not planned to plan any vaccines for his country, but has pushed for the use of herbal medicines and steam treatments.
Tanzania has not reported Covid-19 figures since April 2020, prompting the World Health Organization to ask Tanzania to publish data on the coronavirus and increase public health measures. Last month, the U.S. embassy in Dar es Salaam warned that Covid-19 cases had been on the rise since January.
Cases involving infected Tanzanians traveling abroad have underscored the need for “solid action,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a Feb. 20 statement.
Two people who traveled from Tanzania to the UK carried variant B.1351 first detected in South Africa, which appears to be more transmissible than other versions of the virus and could elude some of the immune protection offered by antibodies.
“The WHO has not yet received information on what steps Tanzania is taking to respond to the pandemic,” Tedros said. “I renew my call for Tanzania to start reporting on Covid-19 cases and sharing data.”