Tanzanian President John Magufuli has died from a heart condition, his vice president said in an address on state television on Wednesday, after days of uncertainty over his health and whereabouts.

“It is with deep regret that I inform you that today on the 17th of March, 2021 at 6 pm we lost our brave leader, the President of the Republic of Tanzania, John Pombe Magufuli, said vice-president Samia Suluhu Hassan.

Tanzania’s leadership appeared to play down rumours about Magufuli’s health earlier on Wednesday when the vice President sent greetings to a coastal region instead of the President. The head of state had been absent from public view for more than two weeks.

She also had said that the President had asked her to thank the people for voting for him in last year’s election, the state media reported. Hassan did not specifically mention the president’s health in her remarks.