HARARE – Despite a flurry of international criticism citing deadly violence and widespread irregularities, President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe has extended congratulations to Tanzanian leader Samia Suluhu Hassan on her re-election.
In a letter dated November 2, 2025, Mnangagwa hailed Suluhu’s victory as a “testimony to the trust and confidence” the Tanzanian people have in her “visionary leadership.”
Mnangagwa’s message omitted any mention of the lethal crackdown by Tanzanian security forces that reportedly killed hundreds.
“Your victory testifies to the trust and confidence that the people of the United Republic of Tanzania have in your visionary leadership and in the policies of the Party you lead, Chama Cha Mapinduzi,” Mnangagwa stated.
“I would like to reaffirm my commitment to work closely with you, Your Excellency, to further strengthen and deepen the strong bonds of friendship and solidarity between our two countries and peoples.
“I also look forward to continue working with you at the regional, continental and multilateral fora on issues of mutual interest and concern.”
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Election Observation Mission (SEOM) has since delivered a negative assessment of Tanzania’s 2025 general election. In its preliminary findings, the mission stated that “in most areas, voters could not express their democratic will.”
It concluded that the election “fell short of the requirements of the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections.”
According to the observers, several factors contributed to the flawed process. These included the intimidation of opposition members and restrictions on freedom of expression, which limited open political participation.
In addition, some polling stations barred party agents from entering, undermining transparency in the voting process.
The SEOM also reported irregularities in certain polling stations, where multiple orderly stacked ballots were found in ballot boxes during voting, creating a perception of ballot stuffing.
The internet shutdown that occurred during the election period further disrupted the work of election observers and hindered the free flow of information.
The African Union (AU) adopted a careful and measured tone. It noted the “loss of human life during post-election protests” and urged Tanzanian authorities to respect basic rights.
AU Commission chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, however, congratulated Suluhu, calling on citizens to act responsibly and reminding all sides of the principles of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance.
Renowned Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono starkly contrasted the event with the nation’s founding principles, saying that Tanzania’s founder, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, would be “horrified.”
The Kenyan Standard, as reported by Chin’ono, described the post-polling period as a ‘bloodbath hidden behind an official blackout’.
Suluhu allegedly used abductions, killings, sexual violence, harassment, and torture to quell dissent against her “kleptocratic rule.”
“If Mwalimu Julius Nyerere were to return to the nation he built on the ideals of African unity, he would be horrified. As Tanzania’s first female president fought to secure her own mandate, blood flowed across the land,” Chin’ono stated.
“Cut off from the world during and after polling, Tanzanians endured what rights groups now describe as a bloodbath that was hidden behind an official blackout but laid bare through reports shared with their Kenyan counterparts,” reports the Kenyan Standard in today’s edition, as Madam Dictator gets inaugurated while hiding in an army barracks in Dodoma, Tanzania’s administrative capital.
“Madam Dictator has used abductions, killings, sexual violence, harassment, and torture to stop any dissent to her kleptocratic rule.
“The tragedy in Tanzania is that Madam Dictator has a law in place which says that once the election result has been announced, it cannot be challenged in a court of law.
“That is typical crude dictatorship because what recourse does anyone who is aggrieved have when they are not allowed to go to a court of law? It is a total embarrassment and a mockery of justice.”
