President Calls For Prayer And Fasting To Defeat Covid-19
Tanzania’s President John Magufuli has called for three days of prayer and fasting to defeat Covid-19.
Magufuli last year declared that Covid-19 was satanic and refused to order vaccines for his citizens.
According to Magufuli the vaccines could harm the population, but he didn’t provide any evidence to back that claim.
He said Tanzania had defeated Covid-19 last year and would win again this year, urging Tanzanians not to panic.
The vice-president of Tanzania’s semi-autonomous islands of Zanzibar, Seif Sharif Hamad, died on Wednesday – nearly three weeks after his party said he had contracted Covid-19.
He was the most prominent political figure in Tanzania to have openly declared that he had Covid-19.
President Magufuli told gathering at the funeral of his chief secretary, John Kijazi, who died of an undisclosed illness while undergoing treatment that “It is possible this is another test but with God we will win.
Let’s not scare each other because we will not overcome. It’s possible we have offended God or we’re being tested and I’m urging that we stand by God.”
The outspoken leader said “I ask you Tanzanians if we have slipped let’s continue praying to God and fasting from today, tomorrow and the day after.
Religious leaders continue encouraging prayers, we will win. God cannot forsake this nation.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) has in the past raised concerns over the posture of Tanzania in fighting the pandemic.
Tanzania is among a few countries in the world refusing to publish any official data on coronavirus cases. It did so only in May last year.