Tanzania’s opposition leader Tundu Lissu faces charges of treason months before the general election is scheduled to be held in October. During Lissu’s trial on July 1, 2025, social media users shared a photo that allegedly showed President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s lawsuit in TV court. But that’s wrong; the image is a changing version of the photo Hassan watched for the 2024 National Budget Showcase.
“President Samia and other leaders follow the progress of the ‘treason case faced by Chadema Chairman Tundu Lissu,” Instagram Post reads publishing July 1, 2025.
“Among other matters, Lissu provided legal class to lawyers in the Republic after citing the article’s infringement on how they violated his fundamental rights and demanded the case to be dismissed, opposing the postponement. All of the cases continue to learn from the learned advocate Tundu Lissu,” the post added. ”
Modified screenshot, taken on July 16, 2025
Similar claims are shared on x here and here.
The image shows Hassan and a group of people in a stately room focused on a TV screen and Lissu is allegedly shown in court.
Lissu, the lawyer and chairman of Chadema, the main opposition party in Tanzania, was arrested in April 2025. charged Treason (reserved here).
Despite Prosecution Telling the court earlier this month that the investigation was completed, paving the way for transferring matters to the High Court (archived) here).
Chadema has always been Disqualification After demanding election reforms, from the general election scheduled for October (released here).
Lissu, there The past have Some The law brush is accused of inciting the public to obstruct the 2025 poll during political gatherings (archived here and here).
Since then, human rights organizations have Called Because of his unconditional release, Amid allegations that Hassan’s government has stifled political opponents (revealed here and here).
However, images allegedly showing Hassan watching Lissu’s recent trial were digitally manipulated.
Shaped images
AFP fact checks were conducted Reverse image search It was also found that not only the image changed, but the original image was earlier than the beginning of the Lissu experiment.
The original image is publishing June 13, 2024, on the official Facebook page of the Presidential Communications Bureau of the State Capitol of Tanzania (Archived here).
“Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of the United Republic of Tanzania, and her aides, conducted television on her home in Chamwino, in the Dodoma region through a television show after the government’s budget meeting of 2024/25,” the Post said.
The Post added: “Treasury Minister Dr. Mwigulu Lameck Nchemba read the speech in Parliament on 13 June 2024.”
Comparison shows that the visual effects on TV were replaced by footage from Tanzanian Broadcasting Corporation ITV Coverage Trial (archived here).
Comparing the screenshots of the changed image (left) and original photos published by Tanzania State Building
Original photos, and other photos are publishing By Tanzanian Parliament X Account on the same day (Archived here).
The image is also feature In local news Report At that time (reserved here and here).
