There is something profoundly disturbing about what just happened in Tanzania and perhaps even more disturbing about how the region responded to it
When President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared to have won 98% of the vote, it was not just an election result; it was a loud alarm bell for democracy in East Africa. Yet, instead of outrage, we saw applause. One after another, African leaders from the African Union (AU) chairperson to presidents across the East African Community (EAC) rushed to congratulate her, even as reports of violence, internet blackouts, and tear gas clouded the country
Witnesses and human rights groups and International media like Aljazeera have reported hundred of deaths, with security forces accused of using live ammunition against unarmed citizens protesting what they believed to be unfair election. Entire neighborhoods went silent as gunfire echoed through the night. Bodies disappeared, . Yet, as this horror unfolded, Africa’s leaders applauded.
There is an unsettling attempt to make every Tanzanian who speaks the truth feel like they are insane. It’s psychological manipulation gaslighting an entire nation. Citizens who question what happened are made to doubt their own eyes and experiences. Some even hesitated to admit there was massive killings and blackouts, afraid to contradict the official narrative
But Internet blackouts don’t just happen by accident during protests. Those who understand how governments operate in such crises know that Internet and power are often cut deliberately to silence, to isolate, and to control. The fires seen in Tanzanian streets mirrored Kenya’s own history with unrest. In such moments, darkness is not just literal it’s political
And then came the tear gas, crossing the Namanga border into Kenya. That alone tells you something was wrong. If Tanzania’s election was truly peaceful and transparent, why would any chaos spill beyond its borders? Why would a neighboring nation feel the sting of repression meant for Tanzanians?
What’s more disheartening is how quickly regional leaders endorsed it all. Their congratulatory messages to President Samia, sent while Tanzania was still burning, were more than political courtesies—they were acts of complicity. They didn’t just look away; they approved
By blessing an election marred by human rights violations and killings, these leaders have set a dangerous regional precedent. They’ve told the people of East Africa that democracy can be crushed in broad daylight, as long as you smile for the cameras at the inauguration. That a blackout, a few arrests, or even deaths, are acceptable prices for “stability.”
This is not stability. It’s stagnation disguised as peace.
Today it is Tanzania. Tomorrow, it could be Uganda, Kenya, or Rwanda. When the leaders sit together at regional summits, how will one condemn the other’s violence, when their own elections carry the same stains?
Leadership should never be a matter of life and death. If you have served, inspired, and led—but have now lost the people’s trust—it is not a tragedy to go home. It is wisdom. What is tragic is clinging to power so tightly that truth, justice, and hope suffocate beneath your grip.
Tanzania deserved better. And so did East Africa.
When President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared to have won 98% of the vote, it was not just an election result; it was a loud alarm bell for democracy in East Africa. Yet, instead of outrage, we saw applause. One after another, African leaders from the African Union (AU) chairperson to presidents across the East African Community (EAC) rushed to congratulate her, even as reports of violence, internet blackouts, and tear gas clouded the country
Witnesses and human rights groups and International media like Aljazeera have reported hundred of deaths, with security forces accused of using live ammunition against unarmed citizens protesting what they believed to be unfair election. Entire neighborhoods went silent as gunfire echoed through the night. Bodies disappeared, . Yet, as this horror unfolded, Africa’s leaders applauded.
There is an unsettling attempt to make every Tanzanian who speaks the truth feel like they are insane. It’s psychological manipulation gaslighting an entire nation. Citizens who question what happened are made to doubt their own eyes and experiences. Some even hesitated to admit there was massive killings and blackouts, afraid to contradict the official narrative
But Internet blackouts don’t just happen by accident during protests. Those who understand how governments operate in such crises know that Internet and power are often cut deliberately to silence, to isolate, and to control. The fires seen in Tanzanian streets mirrored Kenya’s own history with unrest. In such moments, darkness is not just literal it’s political
And then came the tear gas, crossing the Namanga border into Kenya. That alone tells you something was wrong. If Tanzania’s election was truly peaceful and transparent, why would any chaos spill beyond its borders? Why would a neighboring nation feel the sting of repression meant for Tanzanians?
What’s more disheartening is how quickly regional leaders endorsed it all. Their congratulatory messages to President Samia, sent while Tanzania was still burning, were more than political courtesies—they were acts of complicity. They didn’t just look away; they approved
By blessing an election marred by human rights violations and killings, these leaders have set a dangerous regional precedent. They’ve told the people of East Africa that democracy can be crushed in broad daylight, as long as you smile for the cameras at the inauguration. That a blackout, a few arrests, or even deaths, are acceptable prices for “stability.”
This is not stability. It’s stagnation disguised as peace.
Today it is Tanzania. Tomorrow, it could be Uganda, Kenya, or Rwanda. When the leaders sit together at regional summits, how will one condemn the other’s violence, when their own elections carry the same stains?
Leadership should never be a matter of life and death. If you have served, inspired, and led—but have now lost the people’s trust—it is not a tragedy to go home. It is wisdom. What is tragic is clinging to power so tightly that truth, justice, and hope suffocate beneath your grip.
Tanzania deserved better. And so did East Africa.