The Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), the official assembly of Catholic bishops in the country, has publicly denied issuing a statement that urged citizens to maintain peace and avoid demonstrations ahead of the October 29 general election.
The document, which has since been flagged as fake, was widely circulated on social media platforms.
The fake document highlighted the influential position of the Catholic Church in Tanzania, where approximately 30 per cent of the population—over 23 million people—identify themselves as Catholics, making it the largest Christian denomination in Tanzania.
In a video statement released on October 13, 2025, the TEC’s Secretary General, Fr Dr Charles Kitima, unequivocally flagged the document as fake.
“We would like to denounce this statement,” Fr. Kitima stated. “The Tanzania Episcopal Conference did not issue this statement to believers or to Tanzanians in general. The Episcopal Conference is not involved with the content in that document, which bears the false title ‘Statement of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference on Peace for the Nation Ahead of the General Election.’”
The fraudulent document, dated October 11, 2025, called on Tanzanians to refrain from participating in any activities that could disrupt peace, a message that closely mirrors the government’s recent pronouncements. Fr. Kitima condemned the forgery in strong terms.
“This is a bad practice of using the names of Bishops and even using the signatures of Bishops, the President of TEC, to pass a message that did not come from the Council,” he said. “This message or this statement is not a statement from the Bishops. This bad practice should be stopped by those with authority to stop those who violate the regulations of other institutions.”
He added that even the signatures on the document were fabricated, saying: “From today, since yesterday this message, we say the word that has been circulating in the media is fake. Even these signatures used here are fake. Fake because the Bishops did not issue it, nor did the Bishops order anyone to issue that statement.”
The TEC’s swift and public denial underscores the delicate position of religious institutions in Tanzania’s increasingly polarised political landscape. The fake statement has led to accusations that the government is co-opting religious bodies to quell dissent, a charge that other religious institutions have also been forced to deny.
