Tanzania’s President Fires Foreign Minister
Her office said that Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan has fired two top government officials, including the foreign minister, as part of a slight reorganization of her cabinet.
The changes were made as Hassan tried to win back the trust of other countries in his economic and political reforms, which some critics saw as falling apart.
Reforms
These reforms include easing limits on opposition parties and the media.
The president announced late Sunday that she had fired January Makamba as minister of foreign affairs and East Africa cooperation and Nape Nnauye as minister of information, communication, and IT.
No reason was given for taking them away. When asked for comments, Makamba and Nnauye did not reply immediately.
Nnauye comments
Not long ago, Nnauye was fired after his comments in a video went viral. In the video, he said that the outcome of an election would depend on who counts the votes and announces the results.
Nnauye later said he was sorry and that it was a joke, but activists and some people on social media said it hurt Hassan’s efforts to improve democracy.
Who are the new faces in the cabinet
Hassan chose Mahmoud Thabit Kombo as the new minister of foreign affairs and Jerry Silaa as the minister of information, communication, and technology.
Kombo was Tanzania’s ambassador to Italy before being hired, and Silaa was the minister of land, housing, and human settlements development.
The presidency said that two more ministers and assistant ministers were also chosen.
Although Hassan’s government has only been in power since 2021, it has been praised for undoing the crackdowns on the opposition and civil rights groups that her late predecessor ordered.
However, the arrests of a lawyer and an opposition leader last year have made people question her government’s human rights record.
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