Tanzanian Actress Irene Uwoya was on Wednesday forced to apologize following a backlash of a viral video of her dishing out wads of cash to a group of journalists she was addressing on Monday.
Ms Uwoya was at the Hyatt Regency DSM where she was announcing the launch of an online movie service for Tanzanian movies, Swahiliflix.
The actress, who arrived late for the presser, dug into her purse for bundles of cash saying she was appreciating the journos for being patient.
“Na nisiwachoshe sana nimewaweka muda mrefu, swahili flix ni mambo moto lazima tusalimiane na ndugu zetu waandishi wa habari, nawatuza na kitu kidogo (Let me not tire you out any more because I have already kept you waiting for long, Swahiliflix is hot and so we must unite with our journalists, I therefore want to give you a small gift)” said Ms Uwoya.
However, when she began dishing out the cash, commotion ensued as each made attempt to have a share.
Read: Drama As Reporters Scramble For Cash During Tanzanian Actress Irene Uwoya’s Presser (Video)
The video elicited mixed reactions on the interwebs with a section of the netizens accusing the actress of being disrespectful. The journalists, also, received their share of criticism over their conduct during the presser as some had abandoned their equipment to scramble for the money.
However, expressing her regrets, Ms Uwoya apologized for her actions that led to the damage of some pressmen’s equipment.
“Mimi binafsi, kwa sababu mimi ndiye nilifanya hivyo, naomba msamaha kwani sikufanya makusudi, nilifanya kwa mapenzi na furaha zangu. Nilitoa hela kwa mapenzi yangu, sikuwa nawadharau. Kwa walio haribu vifaa vyao naomba mnisamehe,” she said
Loosely translated as: “I, personally, ask for forgiveness since I was the one who brought about all the mess that we saw. I did it out of love and happiness, not because I was demeaning you. And for those whose equipment got destroyed in the process, please forgive me.”
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She went ahead to clarify that her initial remarks that journalists should be well dressed during the project’s official launch on August 31, were not in bad faith.
“Sikusema hamko smart, nilitamani mjee katika uniform kama vile suti siku hiyo. Kwa wale mlinionelea vibaya naomba mnisamehe (I did not say you were not smart, I just meant that you should come in suits on that day. For those who took my statement the wrong way, kindly forgive me),” she added.
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