President of Tanzania, Samia Hassan Suluhu, on Tuesday justified brutal killings by police during election protests in October, accusing protesters of intending to overthrow her government.

Mrs Hassan, who was declared winner with 98 per cent of the votes, said in a national address on Tuesday, “So when we’re told that we used too much force in that event, what was the smallest force? Were we supposed to wait until the protesters – who had planned to overthrow the government – had succeeded?”

The Tanzanian president said her government deployed the needed force to quell protesters who had malicious intentions.

“These were not protests; it was violence with malicious intentions. What happened was a manufactured event and those who planned it intended to bring down our government,” Mrs Hassan said.

She added, “In that situation, the government has a responsibility, and we swear to defend this country and its borders, to protect the safety of citizens and their property. And in that case, the force used is proportional to the event.”

Rechristened “Indi Amin Mama” by protesters due to the clampdown during the October 29 election, Mrs Hassan also railed against the European Union parliament for voting last week to suspend aid to Tanzania over electoral violence.

“They still think they are our masters, they are our colonisers,” Mrs. Hassan said.

The Tanzanian president has been under both local and international pressure after the bloody election held amid an internet shutdown and brutal clampdown on opposition candidates and their supporters.

A post-election investigation by CNN revealed police fatally shooting protesters during the Tanzania election, numerous corpses with gunshot injuries, and signs of mass graves.

The CHADEMA opposition party, whose candidate, Tundu Lissu, was barred from the election, said about 700 people were killed during the election, vowing not to recognise Mrs Hassan as president.

The United Nations, African Union Election Observation Mission, European Union, Southern African Development Community Electoral Observation, and the UK, Canadian, and Norwegian missions in Tanzania have all condemned the “large number of fatalities,” internet shutdown, disqualification of opposition candidates, and brutal clampdown on protesters during the election.