Almost half a year has passed since the COVID-19 pandemic started. All the world has seen the exhaustive work of health organizations, NGOs and especially, the work of thousands of doctors fighting day-to-day treating patients. Doctors that are constantly recording the number of cases to keep the world aware of the outbreak's development.
Despite this hazardous work and everyone's concern to keep abreast of the latest updates and the development of possible treatments, the Tanzanian government has not released aggregate numbers on COVID-19 cases or deaths since April 291. The Tanzanian president John Magafuli - known as the "bulldozer", has decided to stop keeping records of this essential information with the aim of "preventing" the population from becoming alarmed unnecessarily and continue the development of the country's economy.
Nevertheless, his controversial actions reveal a different agenda. The president has been branded as an authoritarian and doubtful political figure by an increasing number of international entities including Amnesty International, the European Union, the country's opposition (such as Chadema and ACT), as well as by International Newspapers.
"Transparency is key in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic," Zitto Kabwe, the leader of the opposition Alliance for Change and Transparency (ACT), told the AFP news agency2. The government's denial and its silence reveal its lack of commitment to Tanzanian citizens and its ambition to further its political ends; since elections are due October this year. "This leads to a tremendous amount of rumors and fears among the population – it's disastrous for this epidemic", said one anonymous health adviser to the government in Dar es Salaam.
One of the president's most controversial and worrisome actions was revealed when he publicly questioned the proficiency of the country's national laboratory's equipment, the technicians, and the official data recorded. He stated that he secretly had a papaya, a quail, and a goat that had tested positive. Later on, the Health Minister suspended the laboratory's director after Magafuli doubted their credibility and accused them of exaggerating the crisis. This attests that Tanzania has been an outlier when it comes to taking extensive safety measures for the control of the spreading of the virus by covering up information.
Furthermore, Magafuli has repeatedly encouraged people to continue going to churches and mosques, arguing that prayers can defeat the virus that he himself termed as "the evil". This highlights the president's devotion hesitation to comply with safety measures given by the WHO. In various Tanzanian cities such as Dar es Salaam, Moshi, and Arusha, water containers and soap can be found available at the entrance of public spaces; however, social-distancing requirements are not being followed, and not many people wear face masks.
There is an African proverb that goes: "When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers most". As stated in the proverb, Tanzanian citizens will be the most affected by the government's decisions and the management of a pandemic that started as a health crisis and turned out to be a controversial political issue.
It is undeniable that the future of the country's economy is what generates the nation's income to continue developing health infrastructure, avoid starvation, and keeps the country from collapsing. Besides, many people who live in low incomes are not financially resilient to such shocks. Nevertheless, this does not detract from the fact that Tanzanians have the right to know the country's position concerning COVID-19. Tanzania, as a democratic African country, can opt to follow the direction that other neighboring nations have followed. Even though concerns about the economic consequences of the crisis are inevitable, the incorporation of minimum safety measures suggested by the WHO is of tremendous importance.
The government's lack of transparency and the denial that the country has wavered this fight is of great concern. If there was free and reliable information, Tanzanians would be able to make informed choices that are crucial under these circumstances; especially because the health of thousands of families across the country is at risk.
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You can also go and find this article in United Worldwide: https://www.unitedworldwide.co/tanzania-and-covid-19.html