Nation in Flames: Tanzania Erupts in Chaos Over “Stolen” Election, President’s Whereabouts Unknown
Tanzania was plunged into its worst political crisis in decades Thursday, as nationwide protests against alleged electoral theft turned violently lethal, prompting a military lockdown, a near-total internet blackout, and casting the whereabouts of President Samia Suluhu into mystery.
The East African nation, once hailed as a beacon of regional stability, now teeters on the brink after citizens, enraged by what opposition leaders are calling a brazenly rigged presidential election, poured into the streets in a massive show of defiance.
The capital, Dar es Salaam, along with other major cities like Mwanza and Arusha, has become a battleground. Images smuggled out before the communications blackout show plumes of black smoke rising from burning tyres, shattered storefronts, and running battles between rock-throwing youths and police armed with tear gas and live ammunition. Unconfirmed reports from local hospital sources cite a mounting death toll, with many victims believed to be victims of live fire.
In an unprecedented move that has escalated the crisis, the Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) issued a stark warning to the police force. A senior army commander, in a statement broadcast briefly on state radio before it went off air, cautioned police units against shooting protesters, declaring that “the army will not stand by while citizens are massacred.” This public schism between the country’s two most powerful security institutions has raised fears of a complete breakdown in state authority.
At the heart of the turmoil is the conspicuous absence of President Samia Suluhu Hassan. Her last public appearance was at a polling station on election day. Since the results—which handed a controversial victory to the ruling party—were announced, she has vanished from public view. A government spokesman, in a brief and chaotic press conference, insisted the President was “safe and managing the situation,” but provided no evidence or location, fueling wild speculation and deepening the sense of a power vacuum.
The government has imposed a nationwide lockdown and a near-total internet shutdown in a desperate attempt to quell the unrest and control the flow of information. The move, however, has only amplified panic and isolated Tanzania from the world, with human rights groups and foreign governments issuing urgent appeals for restraint and the restoration of communications.
Regional neighbours Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda have placed their borders on high alert, fearing a spillover of refugees and instability. The international community, which had warmly embraced President Samia’s earlier reforms, now watches with growing alarm as the nation once praised for its post-Magufuli calm descends into utter chaos.
With streets burning, security forces divided, and its leader missing, Tanzania faces its most profound test in a generation. The dark clouds over Dar es Salaam threaten not just a government, but the very stability of a nation.