Bishop Niwemugizi reveals how Magufuli ordered Immigration to return his passport
What you need to know:
- This, he said , it was all due to his belief that being a Bishop he was the person who would lead a mass at his burial.
Chato. The Catholic Church Bishop for Rulenge-Ngara Diocese Severine Niwemugizi on Thursday, March 25, revealed that the immigration department was prompted to return his passport following an order issued by then President John Magufuli.
Bishop Niwemugizi is not alien to subject rhetoric – a known outspoken figure, he has on numerous occasions found himself at discord with authorities.
In September 2017, he was summoned by immigration officials after he said that Magufuli’s presidency would fail if he did not resume the stalled constitutional review process.
The immigration officials moved to seize Bishop Niwemugizi’s passport, with particular details of what transpired thereafter being very limited.
On Thursday, during a requiem mass for the late President Magufuli at the Mary the Virgin Catholic Church in Chato, Bishop Niwemuguzi said the departed leader ordered immigration officials to hand him back his passport.
This, according to the Bishop, was all due to the late president’s foretold belief that Bishop Niwemuguzi would lead the requiem mass at his burial.
"This is the second time I'm telling you that President Magufuli told me in 2015 that being a Bishop, I'm the person who would bury him. The first time time, he instructed the immigration commissioner to return my passport, hinting on the same reasons," he said.
The Bishop added: "My response to the Head of State was that nobody knows who will die first, therefore let it be a responsibility of the person who will remain behind to take care of the burial of another."
In light of the sudden death of Magufuli on March 17, one can say that the content of their conversation has come to pass.
The Bishop, who commended the late President for efficient execution of his duties, cited verses from the Holy Bible as he called on church believers to spiritually prepare for death.
He reminded the audience of songs composed by a Tanzanian musician, the late Ramadhani Mtoro a.k.a Dr Remmy Ongala on how ‘death has no mercy’.
"In the song, the musician says he would appeal against death, something all of us in the Rulenge – Ngara Diocese would have done for Magufuli to continue serving the country," he said.
He called on the nation to pray for the late Magufuli’s eternal peace, and also took a moment to hail President Samia Suluhu Hassan on her new leadership role, challenging her to fulfill the promises made by her predecessor.
