President Magufuli: Prioritise patriotism
President John Magufuli has called upon Tanzanians to prioritise patriotism and place the interests of the country first than individual benefits.
The Head of State lashed out at some groups of people that were struggling to destroy the country instead of building it.
Speaking after swearing-in two newly appointed cabinet ministers, three ambassadors, a permanent secretary (PS) and the Commissioner of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), Dr Magufuli said leaders and other members of the public were in the country temporarily, but Tanzania is here to stay.
According to him, it was high time all Tanzanians accentuated patriotism for the best interests of the country. “When you go outside the country, everyone is appreciating what our country is doing but in Tanzania it is different…Tanzanians do not appreciate what we are doing,” he stressed.
At State House, the President swore-in the new Minister for Information, Culture, Arts and Sports, Dr Harrison Mwakyembe, to replace Mr Nape Moses Nnauye who was dropped in a mini-reshuffle on Thursday. The President also swore-in Professor Palamagamba Kabudi as the new Minister for Constitution and Legal Affairs, who takes over from Dr Mwakyembe.
Others who took oath of office are Ambassadors Abdallah Possi who becomes the Tanzanian Ambassador to Germany, Sylivester Mabumba (Comoro) and Job Massima (Israel). Former Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) Acting Commissioner General Alphayo Kidata was sworn-in as the new State House Permanent Secretary. Dr Magufuli also sworn-in Judge Stella Mugasha as the Commissioner for the Judicial Service Commission.
The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Vice- President Samia Suluhu Hassan, Acting Chief Justice, Professor Ibrahim Juma, Attorney General (AG), George Masaju, Chief Secretary (CS) Engineer John Kijazi and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Dr Augustine Mahiga, among others.
In her remarks, the Vice-President asked the new appointees to be responsible in their new posts. “Let us unite and work together so that we can help our country to move forward,’’ she said. Speaking after taking oath of office, the appointees paid tribute to the President for trusting them in their new positions.
“I pledge to work diligently for Tanzanians and the government at large,’’ said Dr Mwakyembe. On Thursday, there was widespread rumours on social media that Dr Mwakyembe would not turn up at State House to take oath after he was transferred to the new ministry, but Dr Mwakyembe was yesterday confident and in a jovial mood promising to dedicate his service to the nation.
“I thought it is important that Dr Mwakyembe speaks at least for few minutes so that people on social media can prove that what they were predicting was wrong,’’ said Dr Magufuli when he invited him to the podium. Professor Kabudi said he spent two sleepless nights following his appointment.
“I was asking myself who am I for the President to appoint me?’’ He further said he was happy because incidentally, it appeared yesterday that he was taking oath of office with two of his classmates, Dr Mwakyembe and Ms Mugasha whom he met at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) campus.