Oh brother, where art thou?

Secrecy about the health of leaders in Africa remains a constant, the latest example being Tanzania’s Covid-denier-in-chief, John Magufuli. [View this email in your browser]( March 16, 2021 [Mail & Guardian]( [Mail & Guardian]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( Hi there, Joyce Banda, speaking from her home in Lilongwe last year, vividly remembers the moment she knew she was going to become the president of Malawi. The circumstances were like a movie, albeit a traumatic one. On the morning of 5 April 2012, in his official residence in Lilongwe, President Bingu wa Mutharika of Malawi had a fatal heart attack. That was not the end of his presidency, however. Even as his corpse decomposed, he would go on to govern for two more days while his staff pretended that everything was just fine. According to the constitution of Malawi, the president cannot fire a vice-president. In the event of death or incapacitation of the president, the vice-president automatically assumes power. So, with Bingu dead, Banda had to be president. But there was a problem. As vice-president, Banda was the constitutionally designated successor. However, at the time, Bingu’s brother Peter was scheming to take control, so no one told Banda or Malawian citizens that the president was dead. They even flew his corpse to South Africa to receive “medical attention” in an effort to keep up the ruse. Eventually the commander of Malawi’s army had to intervene. He sent troops to surround Banda’s house. Speaking to Simon Allison and Dhashen Moodley, Banda said she wasn’t sure at first if they were there [to help or to hurt her](. Fortunately for Banda — and Malawi — the soldiers were on her side. African leaders attending the burial would go on to praise Malawi for its “smooth” transition of power, after [a two-day delay in announcing Mutharika’s death]( prompted fears that Banda would be denied office. The Ampersand’s favourite Covid-denier-in-chief, John Magufuli, is the latest African leader to create the conditions for history to be repeated. Unseen for more than two weeks now, his absence has invited the opposition to speculate that he is being treated in a Kenyan hospital. Others are watching flight scanners because another rumour, of him being in India for treatment, is doing the rounds. Although this is yet to be verified by a reliable independent source, multiple reports have speculated that he has found himself in Nairobi thanks to severe Covid-19 symptoms. And, of course, for rival politicians and critics alike, it’s easy to see why this is such a tasty, and potentially historic, morsel of gossip. Magufuli has spent months downplaying the effects of the pandemic in Tanzania. Long-time readers will know all about this: we’ve watched closely as he’s gone from sticking testing kits into goats, to most recently delivering the divine word that God had cleared the plague from his land. (As a subplot in [last week’s Pure Politics]( an election observer described how their 2020 polls went off essentially as normal. If anything, she revealed, her mask-wearing South African group faced the threat of being intimidated by locals who feared they were bringing the virus into the country.) With the rumours swirling, Tanzania’s prime minister has come out to insist the [president is in excellent health](. To ensure that narrative is preserved, police have begun arresting citizens that have spread rumours that Magufuli is ill — because it [“smacks of hate”](. We shouldn’t have to tell you how ridiculous and dangerous such actions are. This entire mess is a result of an opaque government policy of shutting out its people — a lesson that is seemingly in the leadership playbook. Leaders are accountable to those they serve; that precludes them from dropping off the map. Have you subscribed to The Continent? The “Whatsapp newspaper” is your weekly dose of pan-African news and features. By using the same viral networks exploited by disseminators of disinformation, the publication aims to counter the fake news on people's phones with real news. Email “SUBSCRIBE” to TheContinent@mg.co.za or send us a message on WhatsApp or Signal on +27 73 805 6068. Until tomorrow, Kiri Rupiah & Luke Feltham [Subscribe now]( Enjoy The Ampersand? Share it with your friends [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( [Share]( [Share]( Copyright © 2021 Mail & Guardian Media LTD, All rights reserved. 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