Tanzania has lost 25 Catholic priests and 60 nuns to COVID-19 in past two months

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In Tanzania, whose president previously claimed his country’s coronavirus infection was defeated through prayer and divine intervention, has lost more than 25 Catholic priests and 60 nuns in the past two months.

Priests, nuns, Catholic nurses and doctors have died of respiratory problems, said Father Charles Kitima, secretary general of the Tanzania Bishops’ Conference.

“We (Church leaders) don’t test for COVID-19 and doctors can’t tell us because not everyone is allowed to test for the virus,” Father Kitima said.

Tanzania has not updated its COVID-19 data since early May, leaving the number of confirmed cases reported at 509 and related deaths at 21 – much to the dismay of the World Health Organization.

“This situation remains very worrying. I renew my appeal to Tanzania to start reporting COVID-19 cases and sharing data. I also call on Tanzania to implement the public health measures which we know allow to break the chains of transmission and to prepare for vaccination, ”said the WHO Director General on Tanzania and the COVID-19 in a February 20 press release.

Tanzanian President John Magufuli has repeatedly downplayed the importance of the virus.

He urged citizens to “pray for the coronavirus” while refusing to acquire COVID-19 vaccines for the country’s 58 million people, saying they are “dangerous” and “not good for us.”

In June 2020, he declared the country free from coronavirus through divine intervention.

Father Kitima insists that “the coronavirus exists. We ask you to take precautions. We must redouble our efforts to protect ourselves. We have a responsibility to protect the elderly and those with sub-health problems. and taking the necessary precautions “.

“People are not tested. It is a big challenge. The church has about 500 health centers across the country but we are not allowed to test and we do not have the equipment to do it,” he told the media at a press conference in Dar es Salaam.

The local leader of the Catholic Church has asked the government for greater transparency on the evolution of the pandemic in the country.

“Tanzanians have the right to receive accurate scientific information about COVID-19, because this lack of factual information about the virus causes fear among the population,” he said.

In February, Archbishop Gervais Nyaisonga of Mbeya, president of the Tanzania Bishops’ Conference, also urged Tanzanians not to give in to fear and follow the advice of health experts.

In recent days, the government has taken an about-face following a flood of social media reports of deaths attributed to pneumonia or respiratory problems.

President Magufuli began to encourage Tanzanians to wear masks if they wanted to, saying the government had not banned it – despite what he said earlier.

He now warns of faulty face covers on sale in the country, suggesting pandemic-related deaths could be linked to the use of such faulty products and saying those in rural areas of the country were less likely to succumb. to the virus because they tended not to carry them.

Dorothy Gwajima, head of the Ministry of Health, who previously advocated inhaling steam and a vegetable smoothie to treat COVID-19, has now issued a statement warning people of the virus and urging Tanzanians to take precautions.

However, the ministry said it was not recommending lockdown measures. “We will not impose lockdowns because God is on our side,” he said.

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