Tanzania’s President John Pombe Magufuli will go down in history as a revolutionary leader whose relentless fight against deep-rooted corruption saw his country turning around economically.
It was under his leadership that Tanzania graduated out of the class we are still stuck in: “Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
The development is very visible in Tanzania. New highways, improved public transport, less corruption, improved hospitals, and many others.
Sadly, he was also human, with a number of flows. The policy to refuse pregnant girls to return to school was one such downside of his philosophy.
Probably the deadliest mistake he ever made as a leader was his denial of the existence and threat of Covid-19. His mishandling of the pandemic has cost his country thousands of lives, including his own.
That said, for me, President John Magufuli will go down in history as one of the best leaders that have ever lived. He was not an angel, but just human.
For that reason, the lesson I will draw is that no matter how great a leader is, he/she needs strong advisors who can boldly speak into his or her life, especially when he is in error.
John Pombe Magufuli added one term to the leadership vocabulary: “Magufulization”. His legacy leaves on.
