Chief Spokesperson of the Government of Tanzania; Dr. Hassan Abbasi has criticized NTV Kenya media after their report revealing that 50 people died of COVID-19 in Dar es salaam. Taking to his official Twitter page, Abbasi differed with the report terming it as fake news.
According to the report which was read by Mark Maasai, NTV revealed that the information was confirmed by their source a day after the Tanzanian opposition party leader accused the government of hiding information from the public.
Since the outbreak of the virus, the Tanzanian government has been faulted for being reluctant and failing to put strict measures in place to combat the spread of the virus. Although the country temporarily suspended schools and university sessions, it seems to be business as usual as their President has severally stated that God will protect them from the virus.
In the statement by the Tanzanian government spokesperson, he reminded NTV Kenya to exercise professionalism citing that false news has become rampant.
“Journalism at crossroads? This kind of fake and false news is increasingly rampant in a section of some irresponsible media outlets. We remind@ntvkenya to exercise professionalism rather than sensationalism.” reads tweet
Recent reports have confirmed that the government was forced to suspend parliament sittings after two MPs died. The first coronavirus case in Tanzania was reported on March 16, and in the last two weeks of April, their cases jumped to 480 with 16 deaths according to the official update by the government.
Journalism at crossroads? This kind of fake and false news is increasingly rampant in a section of some irresponsible media outlets. We remind @ntvkenya to excercise professionalism rather than sensationalism. pic.twitter.com/QNxbNsdyUu
— Msemaji Mkuu wa Serikali (@TZMsemajiMkuu) April 30, 2020