Tanzania's President John Magufuli addresses residents during a Presidential campaign rally at Sheikh Amri Abeid Memorial Stadium in Arusha, Tanzania, Oct. 23, 2020. (Tanzania State House/Handout via Xinhua)
Tanzanian President John Magufuli has cancelled celebrations to mark the country's Independence Day on December 9 and directed that funds earmarked for the event should be used to buy medical facilities.
DAR ES SALAAM, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli has cancelled celebrations to mark the country's Independence Day on December 9 and directed that funds earmarked for the event should be used to buy medical facilities, a statement by the Prime Minister's Office said on Thursday.
The statement said President Magufuli directed that 835,498,700 Tanzanian shillings (about 360,000 U.S. dollars) that were budgeted for the celebrations should be used to buy medical facilities for the newly built Uhuru hospital in the capital Dodoma.
The statement said Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa announced President Magufuli's decision during an event to mark the 60th anniversary of the Association of Tanzania Employers held in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.
On Nov. 20, 2018, Magufuli cancelled celebrations to mark the Independence Day saying 995,182,000 Tanzanian shillings earmarked for the event should have been used for the building of the Uhuru hospital.
Majaliwa said over 4.2 billion Tanzanian shillings have been used for the construction of the hospital. ■
