Mnangagwa congratulates new Tanzania President

PRESIDENT Mnangagwa yesterday congratulated new Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan after she was sworn in on Friday following the death of President John Magufuli.

President Hassan became the East African country's first female President. In a statement, President Mnangagwa reaffirmed Zimbabwe's position to continue working with the East African country to further strengthen and broaden the two countries' relations.

"On behalf of the Government and people of Zimbabwe and indeed on my behalf, I wish to convey to you, Your Excellency, hearty congratulations on your swearing in as President of Tanzania. Your Excellency and Dear Sister, as you assume this important office, allow me to note with satisfaction the excellent long-standing relations that exist between our two countries which were born during the days of our struggle for liberation and self-determination. Let me assure you of my unwavering commitment to continue working with you to further strengthen and broaden these excellent relations for the mutual benefit of our two countries and peoples," said President Mnangagwa.

The President emphasised his readiness to work with President Hassan in Sadc, to enhance regional integration and in the African Union to achieve the goals of Agenda 2063 and other multilateral fora for peace, security and development.

"I wish you, Your Excellency, personal good health and success, and peace and prosperity for the friendly people of the United Republic of Tanzania," said President Mnangagwa.

President Hassan ascended to the Presidency after President Magufuli's death due to a heart disease was announced by the Government last Wednesday. According to Tanzania's constitution, the Vice-President serves out the remainder of the term of a President who dies in office. President Magufuli, who was first elected in 2015, secured a second five-year term in elections last year in October. The constitution also states that after consultation with their party, the new President will propose a deputy, the choice to be confirmed by the votes of no fewer than 50 per cent of the National Assembly.

President Mnangagwa described the late President of Tanzania as a dedicated Pan-Africanist who championed the removal of illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by the West. He was speaking during a handover ceremony of a utility bus he donated to Zvishavane Vocational Training Centre at State House in Harare yesterday. The President will today travel to the east African country where he will join fellow Sadc leaders attending the funeral of the late Statesman ahead of his burial tomorrow.

"It was very sad news, it came as a huge shock to me personally because of my personal relationship with the late President Magufuli. He was supportive of Zimbabwe. We have been under sanctions for two decades but when he became Sadc chairperson, he is the one who proposed that as the Sadc region, we must take a stand (against the sanctions). Under his chairmanship, 25 October was set aside as a day on each year that the bloc will protest against the sanctions and that they must be lifted by those who imposed them against us."

In 2019, the Sadc Heads of State and Government summit in Dar es Salaam proclaimed 25 October as a day of solidarity with Zimbabwe against sanctions, with regional countries committing to hold events annually on the day in their respective countries, until the punitive measures are lifted.

The bloc's secretariat was tasked to co-ordinate a regional drive, through its diplomatic channels, to exert pressure on the West to relent and remove the sanctions. President Mnangagwa described President Magufuli as a great friend of Zimbabwe whose death will be felt throughout the region.

"He will be interred on Monday so I was called by my colleagues, the first colleague who called was the President of Mozambique (Filipe Nyusi) last night, so we are going to meet in Tanzania. Thereafter my brother (South African President) Cyril Ramaphosa also phoned and we agreed we will meet there. After that my brother (President of Botswana) Mokgweetsi Masisi phoned and we are going to meet there too. I'm expecting a call from (Namibian President) Hage Geingob and I think he is going to convey the same message. So I think most of the Sadc Presidents will be in Dodoma on Monday."

Meanwhile, Youth, Sports, Arts and Recreation Minister Kirsty Coventry has hailed President Mnangagwa for donating a bus to Zvishavane Vocational Training Centre.

"It's huge, the last time the President came to the Zvishavane VTC, he asked if there was anything the Vocational Training Centre needed and we very much needed a bus so he said he would reach out to the private sector and today we have seen the handover of a much bigger bus which is really incredible," she said.