A Tanzanian lecturer has been charged with insulting President John Magufuli in a WhatsApp message, a senior police official said on Friday, bringing the number of people charged under a tough new cybercrimes law to 10.

Magufuli, nicknamed "the bulldozer" for pushing through his policies, has won some praise from Western donors for anti-corruption drives and cutting wasteful government spending since coming to power in November.

But opponents accuse him of becoming increasingly authoritarian, undermining democracy by curbing political activity and restricting live television coverage of parliamentary sessions.

Insulting the president was made a criminal offense in Tanzania under a cybercrimes law passed last year, punishable by up to three years in jail, a fine of around $3,000, or both.

"The senior university lecturer was arraigned in court yesterday, and I think he was later released on bail," Julius Mjengi, police chief of the south-west Tanzanian town of Iringa told Reuters by telephone.

Police said the lecturer was charged with offenses under Tanzania's strict cybercrimes law. The lecturer denies the charges.

"The number of people who have been arrested across the country thus far for insulting the president has now risen to 10," Tanzanian newspaper Mwananchi said in an article on Friday.

Those who have faced trial for insulting Magufuli in recent months include students and opposition politicians.

A U.S. aid agency in March canceled nearly $500 million of funding for Tanzania partly on concerns over enforcement of the new cybercrimes law.
The U.S. government's Millennium Challenge Corporation said Tanzania has "engaged in a pattern of actions inconsistent with MCC's eligibility criteria" hence the decision to suspend its partnership with the East African nation.

(Reporting by Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala; Editing by Duncan Miriri and Hugh Lawson

http://lifedrama.com.ng/%e2%80%8btanzanian-lecturer-arrested-for-insulting-president-on-whatsapp/

Buharis bro in d making. After using cyber crime to advance ur course u no want to shut the door.

Only for AFRICA... Freedom after speech isn't guarantee

my kind of guy..

So its not only in Nigeria. What's wrong with our continent?

IF the president is not probing only people outside his party then he is doing a great Job

It wasn't an issue when GEJ was in office but suddenly an insult now what happened to freedom of speech....... Africans and their double standard application......

TrueSenator:
It wasn't an issue when GEJ was in office but suddenly an insult now what happened to freedom of speech....... Africans and their double standard application......

That shows you that maturity is not necessarily predicated by age, neither is egalitarianism acquired by dubbing your self a "Born-Again Democrat" or not; the major determinant of how your rule in power will be should be adjudged from your pre-election season antecedents.

But, you see in Africa, the reverse is the case. We keep voting in the lizards who promised us they would transform into alligators once in power, what a collective shame?!

The impact that tribalism, sycophancy, "bad-belleism", peevish sentimentalism, "pocket-endorsements" and stomach-infrastructure campaigning play in our elections and leadership selection process must tell you something if you listen hard enough; which is that even the masses are not sincere to themselves. They often, by majority, vote in leaders they deserve!

They do that forgetting that they, most of all, needed to be careful because the near-absolute powers arrogated to the office of their various presidencies. But, they leave the quiet, hardworking technocrat & humanitarian types, and constantly go for the rough-rider types. May God help us!

They forget also that Africa plays host to the most incidences of flagrant abuses of rights, freedoms, privileges and powers as well repeatedly demonstrated disregard for the law (i.e. the constitution) by the executive while there are almost no avenues for common men to meaningfully seek redress and be heard. Its a real travesty.

Too much grammar so I have no choice but to agree with you

chachanga:


That shows you that maturity is not necessarily predicated by age, neither is egalitarianism acquired by dubbing your self a "Born-Again Democrat" or not; the major determinant of how your rule in power will be should be adjudged from your pre-election season antecedents.

But, you see in Africa, the reverse is the case. We keep voting in the lizards who promised us they would transform into alligators once in power, what a collective shame?!

The impact that tribalism, sycophancy, "bad-belleism", peevish sentimentalism, "pocket-endorsements" and stomach-infrastructure campaigning play in our elections and leadership selection process must tell you something if you listen hard enough; which is that even the masses are not sincere to themselves. They often, by majority, vote in leaders they deserve!

They do that forgetting that they, most of all, needed to be careful because the near-absolute powers arrogated to the office of their various presidencies. But, they leave the quiet, hardworking technocrat & humanitarian types, and constantly go for the rough-rider types. May God help us!

They forget also that Africa plays host to the most incidences of flagrant abuses of rights, freedoms, privileges and powers as well repeatedly demonstrated disregard for the law (i.e. the constitution) by the executive while there are almost no avenues for common men to meaningfully seek redress and be heard. Its a real travesty.

TrueSenator:
Too much grammar so I have no choice but to agree with you

Sorry, my able Senator .
Am learning work from yhu & uncle Patrick 'pato' Obahaigbon nah?
Me self wan reach House of Assembly dey begin chop beta tinz, dey drive my babe in bulletproof car like yhu
but, i will serve the pple o...i promise i will serve them sotey na dem go dey beg me to stop