John Magufuli, Tanzania’s President, has passed on from a brief illness.

Tanzanian President John Magufuli, who drew widespread criticism for his denialism of the coronavirus pandemic, has died only five months after he won a second term in a disputed election. He was 61.

“We have lost our courageous leader, President John Magufuli, who has died from a heart illness,

This was disclosed by Vice President, Samia Suluhu Hassan in a broadcast on Wednesday evening.

“Dear Tanzanians, it is sad to announce that today 17 March 2021 around 6 p.m. we lost our brave leader, President John Magufuli who died from heart disease at Mzena hospital in Dar es Salaam where he was getting treatment,” the vice president said

Magufuli had not been seen in public since the 24th of February. The Vice President, Samia Suluhu Hassan, will be sworn in and complete the rest of the five-year term that Magufuli began serving last year after winning a second term, becoming Tanzania’s first female president.

What you should know about Magufuli

Magufuli was born in Chato, north-west Tanzania, in 1959, and Studied Chemistry and maths at the University of Dar es Salaam, after which he worked as a Teacher and Industrial Chemist before he entered Politics.

He was elected as Member of Parliament in 1995, Minister in 2000 and President in 2015.