Magufuli bug bites Nairobi residents. | nyula blog

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Saturday, December 12, 2015

Magufuli bug bites Nairobi residents.



In what appears to be their persistent admiration of President John Pombe Magufuli, some proprietors of public service vehicles (PSVs) in Kenya’a capital, Nairobi, have inscribed the portrait of Tanzania’s leader on their vehicles.
 
This is not the first time the neighbouring country has expressed its outright admiration for President Magufuli’s no-nonsense approach to administration.
 
On Thursday evening, this writer rode inside one of the PSVs plying between Ngong and the Central Business District, which had Magufuli's portrait on its both sides.
 
Asked why he chose to have the portrait on his bus, James Kamau, the driver, plainly put it that it was based on his new leadership style which he said had never been witnessed anywhere on the continent.
 
The driver went further, suggesting that Magufuli was a president best suited for Kenya, which was engulfed in corruption scandals by  senior government officials.
 
"If only we had Magufuli as our president, none of this mess would have been happening," he opined.
 
The bus driver was however quick to point out that Magufuli would have risked his life had he been Kenya’s president, thanks to powerful and well-connected network that propagates the vice in the country.
 
Elsewhere on the streets of Nairobi, some residents were still baffled by the resident's recent decision to cancel Independence Day celebrations and instruct that part of the funds be used to buy more beds for the main hospital in Dar es Salaam and road construction.
 
At drinking and nyama choma joints, revellers seemed to be engrossed in discussions pertaining to the leadership style exhibited by President Magufuli.
 
"He (Magufuli) has revolutionised the leadership style in the region, I think it is the right way to go," remarked John Auma, a patron at a local joint in Eastlands.
 
On December 9, President Magufuli led from the front, marching out of State House last Wednesday and mucking in with ordinary wananchi to clean up some parts of the International Fish Market at Feri.
 
John Juma, a TV journalist with KTN, said he was surprised by the political intrigues happening in Tanzania since swearing in of President Magufuli, saying it was an unprecedented event to have taken place in Tanzania. According to the journalist, the austerity measures he had imposed in his new regime were sending shock waves across the region.
 
"By now, other presidents must be hoping to borrow a leaf or two from Magufuli," he said.
 
Since he became the country's CEO he has so far cancelled Independence Day celebrations, limited foreign travel to only what is most essential, with those travelling needing to get special permission from him or the Chief Secretary of the Cabinet.
 
Other measures include cancellation of workshops and seminars held in expensive hotels, with ministries having to use their own boardrooms.
 
Peter Mutua, a political commentator based in the city, insisted that Magufuli’s impact was clearly being felt in the region.
 
Magufuli's no-nonsense approach, his anti-corruption crusade and his austerity drive have turned him into a star on the social media. 
 
The hashtag WhatWouldMagufuliDo has recently been trending on the social media here for days and still retains momentum.
 
It includes a large variety of clever quips of common sense solutions to everyday problems that reflect what the Twitterati at least think of President Magufuli thus far.
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