Africa-Press – Tanzania. On Tuesday this week Tanzania lost its most decorated civil engineer the late Patrick Mfugale, a civil servant who left a mark that will not be easily erased in the transport sector.
The demise of the Tanzania National Roads Agency (TANROADS) Chief Executive Officer sent shockwaves around the nation given the fact that until his death there was no news about him falling seriously ill.
Leaders who spoke during an event held at Karimjee Hall in Dar es Salaam on Friday to bid him farewell, including President Samia Suluhu described the late Engineer Mfugale as a patriotic civil servant who served the country diligently.
The Head of State said the country lost a competent engineer who played a crucial role in building a number of transport infrastructure projects across the country, asking Tanzanians and government leaders to follow the footsteps of the late Mfugale by ensuring that they leave remarkable footprints for the greater interest of the nation.
Those with fresh memory will remember that on September 27, 2018, during the event to launch Mfugale Flyover, the fifth phase President the late Dr President John Magufuli described the late Mfugale as a hardworking person, patriotic, innovative and honest.
Describing how honest and patriotic the late Engineer Mfugale was, the late President Magufuli recalled an incident that occurred between 2007 and 2008 when he (Mfugale ) and his colleague identified only as Engineer Mujungi were threatened to be fired, after they disagreed with big wigs who were pushing for personal agendas, but the two stood firm.
The late Magufuli urged other local experts to emulate the personal qualities of Engineer Mfugale to move the country forward and avoid unethical professional practices.
As we mourn the death of the late Engineer Mfugale, the well experienced and a true patriot who dedicated much of his lifetime constructing road infrastructure projects, civil servants, especially engineers must ask themselves on whether they do justice to this nation.
Often we have heard ministers complaining about the shoddy works performed by engineers who have been implementing various projects in various sectors. We have heard the government firing some engineers due to their underperformance and others being linked to corruption practices.
Engineers, in any nation, are key people in moving the country forward since a large number development projects fall in their shoulders.
The name of Engineer Mfugale will always be remembered due to the simple reason he worked tirelessly for this nation. He played a key role in almost all mega transport infrastructure projects in this country.
As we mourn Engineer Mfugale’s death we, Tanzanians, especially civil servants must ask ourselves if we will leave any mark the day when we depart from this earth.
