Tanzanian govt shuts down third newspaper over fake news allegations

Tanzania closes third newspaper since June as part of media crackdown , it has been reported .
Tanzania on Friday shut down another newspaper , the third since June .
The action is coming on the heels of the warning by President John Magufuli earlier in the year that the days of newspapers his government viewed as unethical were numbered .
The Director - General of the state - run Tanzania Information Services , Hassan Abbasi, said in a statement that a weekly newspaper , Raia Mwema , had been banned from publishing for 90 days , beginning on Friday.
“The independently- owned outlet was suspended , he said, after publishing an article this week saying Magufuli was destined to fail in his job and in which it attributed “fabricated ” statements to the president .
“The government issued a lenient punishment despite the gravity of the offence because the editors admitted their mistake , ” he said.
Tanzania suspended publication of the weekly MwanaHalisi newspaper for 24 months on Sept. 20 and banned another newspaper , Mawio , in June for a similar period .
Magufuli , nicknamed “The Bulldozer ” for his forceful leadership style , has won some praise from Western donors for his anti -corruption drive and for cutting wasteful public spending .
However , opponents accused him of increasingly undermining democracy by curbing dissent and stifling free speech.