NAIROBI — Tanzania’s first woman president, the calm, measured Samia Suluhu Hassan, brings a striking change of leadership style as a successor to John Magufuli, a brash populist who drew global attention by playing down the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hassan, sworn in on Friday, is regarded as a consensus-builder, a trait that may prove an asset in dealing with the various factions within the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party and security agencies following the announcement of Magufuli’s death.
“I don’t speak in a forceful voice, like others,” she told a BBC Swahili interview last year.
“But to speak with someone in a way that they understand you, it’s not neces…
Keep on reading: Team player Hassan succeeds Tanzania’s blunt-spoken Magufuli