Former Tanzanian Ambassador to Cuba, Humphrey Polepole, has written a letter to President Samia Suluhu Hassan explaining his decision to resign from the position, citing what the diplomat described as “losing peace of heart and faith in the current administration.”  

In the letter dated July 13, 2025, which circulated on social media, Polepole, who also served as Head of the Representative Office of the United Republic of Tanzania in Havana, Cuba, with additional responsibilities for the Caribbean region, Central America, and friendly nations Colombia, Venezuela, and Guyana, outlined the following reasons for his decision:  

“Throughout my time serving both domestically and internationally, I have closely observed and sadly witnessed leadership trends that are not properly aligned with safeguarding human rights, peace, and respect for people, genuine commitment and accountability in addressing their grievances and challenges, and the erosion of leadership ethics at various levels.

“The weakening in the execution of the government’s fundamental duties for the welfare of citizens; these issues threaten the broader interests of the United Republic of Tanzania. All this has further led me to lose peace of heart and faith in the current administration I am part of.

“Recent blatant violations of the principles, culture, and traditions of Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM)—particularly in the process of selecting party leaders, which at every stage has been the foundation of the party’s vitality and an opportunity for Reforms that collectively give the party a clean image before the public ahead of elections; this tradition of internal party reforms has been a crucial pillar of CCM’s legitimacy and electoral success. There is a famous CCM slogan that says, ‘Party first, individual later.’ At the beginning of this year, when I saw this slogan being implemented differently, I repeatedly asked myself: Whose interests are being fought for at this time—an individual, a group, or the Party Institution? 

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“Since I can no longer be part of an administration that lacks motivation and adherence to the principles of the country’s constitution and the party, justice, morals, humanity, and accountability to the citizens, I have voluntarily decided to resign from my leadership and governmental roles.”

Polepole, who has previously served as a Nominated Member of Parliament, District Commissioner, and even as CCM’s Secretary for Ideology, Publicity, and Training, was first appointed in 2022 as Tanzania’s High Commissioner to Malawi before being transferred to Cuba in 2023.  

His appointment in 2022 came when Polepole, who had served as a member of the Constitutional Review Committee, was among the few from CCM who openly criticised the Samia Administration, which came to power on March 19, 2021, following the death of her predecessor, John Magufuli.  

Through his online television program, Shule ya Uongozi, or Leadership School, which aired on YouTube, Polepole shared his views on the country’s leadership direction, condemning corruption and warning about the presence of “rogues” in leadership—a stance that earned him significant popularity online.  

However, on December 17, 2021, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) indefinitely suspended the programme on allegations of publishing “false news,” with Polepole describing the move as one of the challenges of “speaking the truth.”  

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In his resignation letter dated July 13, a copy of which was also sent to the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Ambassador Polepole thanked President Samia for trusting him with the role, which he accepted with “honour.”

“I received with great honour the appointment and the responsibility you entrusted to me to represent our country at the international level,” Polepole wrote in the letter.  

“I believed and continue to believe there was a purpose and important work to uphold, stabilise, manage, strengthen, and advance the broad interests of our nation in the areas of representation you tasked me with overseeing,” the diplomat added. “It is an immense and immeasurable honour to be trusted as your Representative, our Nation, our Country, the citizens, and the Authorities of the state. For this, I say thank you.”  

Polepole stated he would remain an ordinary CCM member, “a patriot and loyal citizen to the Nation and our country.”

“I trust in the Heavenly God and am inspired by the great hope that one day our country will be led on the foundations of justice, morals, firm management of boundaries and leadership discipline, good intentions, clean politics, good leadership, and the fear of God,” concluded Ambassador Polepole.