Tanzania's Ambassador to Cuba Humphrey Polepole resigns, citing loss of faith in President Samia Suluhu's leadership

In a rare act of public defiance, Tanzania's Ambassador to Cuba, Humphrey Polepole, has resigned from his diplomatic post and all public leadership positions, citing a fundamental loss of faith in the country's governance and ruling party.

In a detailed letter addressed to President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Sunday, Polepole described his decision as one born not of haste but of deep reflection on the direction of national leadership.

The letter, dated July 13, 2025, is unusually candid for a Tanzanian diplomat and amounts to a damning critique of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party - the same party he has long loyally served.

"Kwa heshima na unyenyekevu, naomba kukutaarifu kuwa nimefikia uamuzi wa kujiondoa kwenye nafasi ya Uongozi wa Umma..." ("With respect and humility, I wish to inform you that I have decided to withdraw from public leadership...")

Polepole, who previously served as an MP and ambassador to Malawi, had been posted to Cuba, where he represented Tanzania in the wider Caribbean region, including Venezuela and Colombia.

He was appointed to the Havana post in April 2023 in a diplomatic redeployment by President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

But in his two-page resignation, Polepole lamented that the ruling party had veered away from its founding principles, especially in the way it selects leaders.

He pointed to a worrying culture of opportunism and suppression of reform voices.

"Nilipoona kauli hii inafanyika vinginevyo, nimejiuliza mara kadhaa ni maslahi ya nani yanapinganiwa: mtu, kikundi au Chama Taasisi?" ("When I saw that this statement was being acted upon contrary to its meaning, I kept asking myself—whose interests are being fought for: an individual, a clique, or the institution of the party?")

He questioned the legitimacy of the phrase "Chama kwanza, mtu baadaye" — loosely, the party before the person — which he said has now been distorted to serve political gatekeeping rather than collective interest.

He warned that such rhetoric had become a cover for loyalty tests and exclusion, undermining the party's stated mission of justice and dignity.

Polepole added that he could no longer serve in a leadership system that "violates the constitution, principles of justice, integrity, and public accountability."

Though he reaffirmed his loyalty to the party as a member, he made it clear he would no longer participate in what he called "a leadership space divorced from ethics and values."

"Kwa kuwa siwezi kuendelea kuwa sehemu ya uongozi usiohamasika na utiifu wa misingi ya katiba..."

("Since I can no longer be part of leadership that disregards constitutional principles...")

The letter is as much a moral protest as it is a political statement.

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• Tanzania elections 2025
• CHADEMA party leader
• President Samia Suluhu
• Humphrey Polepole
• Tanzania's Ambassador to Cuba Humphrey Polepole resigns
• citing loss of faith in President Samia Suluhu's leadership

Delivered in courteous Swahili, its tone is deferential but unmistakably charged.

Polepole repeatedly invoked God, patriotism, and future generations as the audience for his decision.

"Ninamwamini Mungu wa Mbinguni na ninahamasika na tumaini kuu kwamba siku moja nchi yetu itaongozwa kwa misingi ya haki..." ("I believe in God Almighty and hold the hope that one day our country will be governed by principles of justice...")

The ambassador's resignation is likely to fuel debate over internal governance in CCM, a party that has ruled Tanzania since independence.

Polepole, once a trusted party strategist and spokesperson during President John Magufuli's regime, has now become one of the most prominent figures to publicly reject its current trajectory.

State House Tanzania has yet to issue a formal response.