Dar es Salaam, Jan. 1 -- THE government yesterday assured that the country was safe and allayed fears over security threats. It also encouraged Tanzanians to celebrate New Year 2021 peacefully.

Home Affairs Minister George Simbachawene made a statement during a live interview aired on TBC from the capital city of Dodoma.

He utilised the occasion to clarify his ban on public gatherings on open grounds on New Year Eve.

In his directive issued on Wednesday, the minister said his ministry had decided to ban such gatherings as a precaution against disasters that might happen during big gatherings.

He said rallies, which involved people of different faiths and ages, including children and elders, were sometimes sources of deaths and injurie...