Tanzania’s justice minister has dismissed concerns about the whereabouts of President John Magufuli, who has not been seen in public for nearly two weeks.
Mwigulu Nchemba said Mr Magufuli was not a TV presenter or leader of a jogging club so he didn’t need to post selfies of himself every day.
Exiled opposition leader Tundu Lissu told the BBC that according to his sources the president was being treated in hospital for coronavirus in Kenya.
Another Tanzanian politician reportedly told Associated Press, on condition of anonymity for fear of a backlash, that he had spoken to people close to the president who said he was seriously ill and in hospital.
Magufuli, a former chemistry professor was first elected president in 2015. He has mocked coronavirus tests, denounced vaccines as part of a Western conspiracy to take Africa’s wealth, and opposed mask-wearing and social distancing.
Tanzania stopped reporting coronavirus data in May last year when it said it had 509 cases and 21 deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which has urged Magufuli’s government to be more transparent and to implement COVID-19 curbs.
