Politics
John Magufuli: Tanzania’s new president cleans up country, tackles waste and corruption
In a not-so-subtle rebuke of his predecessors, Tanzania’s new President John Magufuli has displayed zeal for austerity and impatience with corruption and waste since taking office a month ago.
Magufuli has cancelled Independence Day celebrations – due on December 9 – traditionally a time for the government to spend big on a public display of nationalism.
“It is so shameful that we are spending huge amounts of money to celebrate 54 years of independence when our people are dying of cholera,” Magufuli said.
The time is to be spent instead on street-cleaning to improve sanitation and arrest the spread of a cholera outbreak.
He also downsized by more than 90 percent the budget for the opulent state dinner that usually marks the opening of parliament. Money saved has been spent on hospital beds and roadworks.
Since taking office in early November, the Magufuli administration has cancelled foreign travel for officials, banned the purchase of first-class air tickets, ordered that government meetings and workshops be held in government buildings rather than expensive hotels, and cut a bloated delegation of 50 people set to tour Commonwealth countries to just 4.
Instead of sponsoring a World AIDS Day exhibition last week, Magufuli ordered the money be spent on anti-retroviral drugs for AIDS sufferers.
He has turned up in person and on foot at government ministries and demanded to know why civil servants were not at their desks.
The headline-grabbing thrift and frugality has proved popular, on the streets and on social media where Tanzanian Twitter users created the hashtag #WhatWouldMagufuliDo to share their often-humorous money-saving ideas.
“In a continent where, in general, corruption and embezzlement of public funds are a way of life for African leaders, Magufuli’s rigorous and prompt austerity measures have been hailed as very impressive,” wrote a columnist in Tanzania’s Citizen newspaper.
Neighboring nations have also taken a keen interest. Larry Madowo, a columnist for Kenya’s Daily Nation, compared his country’s President Uhuru Kenyatta unfavorably with Magufuli.
“Even before he has settled in long enough to change the drapes at State House, Magufuli has done more tangible work than Uhuru,” in office since 2013, he wrote.
Magufuli’s actions appear to be more than grandstanding, with arrests for alleged corruption already made.
“The president is on the right track in fighting graft and abuse of public offices,” presidential official Ombeni Sefue said, following the suspension of the Tanzania Revenue Authority head amid reports of the “disappearance” of 349 shipping containers from the Dar es Salaam port causing an estimated loss of over Tsh80 billion (US$40 million).
Police are reportedly holding at least a dozen suspects in connection with the scam.
Even Magufuli’s opponents have signaled their approval with former chairman of the opposition Civic United Front (CUF), Ibrahim Lipumba, commending his actions.
Benson Banna, a lecturer at the University of Dar es Salaam said Magufuli appears serious in his war on waste and graft.
“He has started very well,” said Banna.
Source: AFP