Ali Hassan Mwinyi had an unassuming personality. When he began his 10-year tenure as Tanzanian president in 1985, he endured the omnipresent shadow of his predecessor Julius Nyerere. That was an inspiration and a challenge.

Mwinyi would later write in his memoir that he was not sure how Nyerere, who remained an influential figure in Tanzanian politics until his death in 1999, viewed his presidency.

“Looking back, I am drawn to think that he mistook my humility for weakness in leadership,” he writes.

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