Tue 6 December 2022:
Friday’s Independence Day celebrations in Tanzania have been canceled by President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who has instead ordered that the funds be utilized to construct dormitories for kids with special needs.
The $445,000 cost of the 61st Independence Day celebration will be utilized to construct eight dormitories in elementary schools around the country.
Tanzania’s Minister of State, George Simbachawene, on Monday said the money had been disbursed.
He said that instead of having parades and other national celebrations, the East African country will commemorate Independence Day by having public dialogues on development.
“The debates and conferences will be preceded by various schedules for regional and district leaders to carry out social activities in different areas including cleaning hospitals, schools, elderly homes and groups with special needs,” he said.
Usually, Independence Day celebrations are marked with pomp and state banquets.
Tanzania has postponed the festivities before, though not this time.
In 2015, the country’s then-President John Magufuli canceled celebrations and used the money to build a road in Dar es Salaam, the commercial center.
He repeated it in 2020 and instructed that medical facility purchases be made from the budget.
Hassan, the current president, is Tanzania’s first female leader.
She previously drew attention by ordering big-bellied policemen to lose weight to be more effective at work.
She served as a development officer for the Zanzibar government for decades before ascending to greater rank. She later served as the executive director of a group that served as an umbrella for Zanzibar’s non-governmental organizations while working as a project manager for the UN’s World Food Programme.
She has also given public speeches to inspire Tanzanian women and girls to pursue their aspirations. She formerly served as a minister for youth employment, women, and children.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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