Director of Tanzania Information Services, MAELEZO, and Chief Government Spokesperson,Mr Hassan Abbas
The Director of Tanzania Information
Services Department, MAELEZO, who doubles as Chief Government
Spokesperson, Dr Hassan Abbasi, also directed the newspaper to publish
the apology letter on its front page in the next edition to be published
next Monday (February 06, 2017).
“The government will continue to be the
guardian of this noble and important profession but will not hesitate to
take actions against journalists (and newspapers) whose reports are
based on sensationalism rather than facts,” Dr Abbasi said in a
statement issued yesterday from Dodoma.
Dr Abbasi had on Monday issued a 24-hour
ultimatum to editor of MwanaHalisi, which is published by Hali Halisi
Publishers, to apologise for the defamatory article or face the wrath of
the law. The weekly-tabloid had on its January 30-February 05 edition
published a report titled; “Ufisadi ndani ya ofisi ya JPM,” which can be
translated as “Graft in the office of JPM (the presidency).
” However, the report in question
referred to what the newspaper described as ‘procurement flaws’ at
Kibaha Education Centre, in Coast Region, which is under the President
Office (Regional Administration and Local Governments).
“The article thus aims at tarnishing the
image of the president, the government thus instructs the editors of
the newspaper to assess themselves and make an apology in accordance to
Section 40 of Media Services Bill of 2016 which gives them an
opportunity to express regret.
“I thus direct the newspaper to make the
apology within the next 24 hours starting today January 30 at 1600
hours,” Dr Abbasi instructed in his letter. The MAELEZO boss was irked
that the newspaper has been making the same mistakes now and again
despite several reminders from the government.
“We have issued the warning putting in
mind that this time round you have heeded to our calls and admitted of
the wrongdoing,” Dr Abbasi said in his letter. The editor of the
newspaper, Mr Jabir Idrissa, promptly responded and apologised for the
defamatory article against the head of state.
“I admit that the report in question did
not make a positive portrayal of the president to the public since the
institution in question does not fall under his office,” Mr Idrissa said
in a letter dated January 31, this year.
He thus apologised to the president and
the general public, pledging that the newspaper will be more watchful of
its content in future publications.
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