Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan has strongly criticized the protests that followed the election where she was declared the winner with nearly 98 percent of the vote.

Meanwhile, the main opposition party claims that hundreds of people have been killed by security forces.

The country’s electoral commission stated that Hassan won 97.66 percent of the vote, with an 87 percent turnout.

However, journalists and other observers from AFP news agency noted that many polling stations looked empty during the vote.

Hassan sought this decisive victory to secure her power and silence internal critics, which she achieved with the help of the main opposition candidates either being jailed or disqualified before the election. This crackdown led to large-scale protests across the country.

When accepting her winner’s certificate on state television, Hassan warned that the government would use all available measures to maintain control.

“The government strongly condemns and denounces those incidents. When it comes to the national security… there is no alternative but to employ all defence measures.”

The main opposition party, Chadema, reported severe casualties to AFP, claiming that, “no less than 800 people” have been killed by security forces since Wednesday.

A security source and a diplomat in Dar es Salaam also confirmed to AFP that deaths were “in the hundreds,” though an internet blackout has made it difficult to confirm details.

Chadema has rejected the results entirely, with spokesman John Kitoka calling the election result a “mockery of the democratic process,”. He called for a “fresh election,” and added, “We are going to announce our reaction that could also include calling for national protests.”

Father Charles Kitima, secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference in Dar es Salaam, expressed his deep concern over the reported violence,“It’s a very sad event. For the first time in our country, we are experiencing the mass killing of people protesting,” he told AFP by phone, according to reports.

The African Union chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf congratulated President Hassan but stated that he “deeply regrets the loss of human life.”

The election turmoil has also affected Tanzania’s economy, leading to; Tourists being stranded due to canceled flights, the main port at Dar es Salaam, a vital economic hub being shut down, reports of rising food prices, closed petrol stations, and halted public transport.

One citizen in Dar es Salaam, Mohamed Rajab, told AFP,“I have been staying in the mosque since Wednesday when the violence erupted. There is no transport. I’m not sure when I’m going back home.”

The UN chief, Antonio Guterres, also expressed that he was “deeply concerned” about the situation in Tanzania, “including reports of deaths and injuries during the demonstrations,” according to his spokesperson.

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