Three Tanzanian police officers have lost their jobs after a photograph of two of them kissing went viral on social media. The picture, which was taken by a colleague on his phone, shows Asumba Mwasumbi and Veronica Mdeme kissing outside in full uniform.
Tanzanian newspaper The Post reported on October 12 that the apparently enamoured pair and Fadhiri Linga, the photographer, were fired on grounds of gross misconduct in the course of their duty. Police regional commander Henry Mwaibambe said that the image went against the force’s moral principles, according to The Independent.
“We followed all disciplinary procedures to make sure that they were given a chance to defend themselves,” he said, adding: “The officer looking at the case was convinced there was compelling evidence against them, and that they had breached police code of conduct. That’s why they lost their jobs.”
Mr Masoud George, a lawyer at the Tanzania Legal and Human Rights Centre, told a reporter for the BBC that the decision, while harsh, is probably legal. “It is according to their code of conduct, so from a legal point of view we can’t say their dismissal was unfair,” he said.
Many Tanzanians have compared the heavy-handed response by the security force to its limp-wristed reaction against accusations of corruption. Tanzania’s police force was ranked the most corrupt last year on the East Africa Bribery Index.
