BY BEN ONYEUKWU
The continued media discrimination that exist at the Radio Nigeria Heartland FM, Owerri against the Pentecostal Churches has really assumed a worrisome dimension, since the issues raised by the writer on the matter, a few months ago seem to have fallen on deaf ears. To call a spade, a spade, there exist a subtle “contempt policy” which is unofficially operated by some top management staff of the radio house, as it has since shun the airing of gospel news from the pulpits of the aforementioned churches, except on commercial arrangements.
In this connection, the writer in one of his columns cited that, a meticulous listener to the programmes of the station on Sundays would clearly notice that its religious news are often, either from the Catholic or Anglican pulpits, and sparingly from those of the Methodist Churches, with non from the Pentecostal platform, yet the latter remains a strong financial source of the radio-house through its evangelical programmes.
Investigation shows that the present management of the Heartland FM Radio, Owerri does not send reporters to cover the church services of the Pentecostal denominations as it does for the Orthodox ones on Sundays, but only lures them into taking up slots for their sponsored religious programme, with its exorbitant charges designed to rip-off the movement.
But, the cited media segregation, based on religion, does not exist at the central point of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), as on Sundays, one notices that there is a spread out on religious news gathering and airing, as no Christian denomination is discriminated against during the relay of the network news of the corporation. With this in mind, one begins to wonder why some staff of the Heartland FM station of the corporation hold evil in their hearts against the Pentecostal Churches that hold the highest level of patronage which the radio-house enjoys, and if one may ask, are these wicked workers of this branch of the FRCN not agents of hell in sheep-clothing? Or do they not know that God does not take it kindly with those who work against the gospel in any generation?
Therefore, by the actions of the implicated staff of the corporation, they risk the future benefits of their labour, unless they repent, as well as desist from the said media discrimination which they have put in place against the Pentecostal arm of the Christian faith, as the writer by this, also calls on the Pentecostal Churches to be alerted of this wicked trend against the House of God, and in turn begin to withdraw their sponsored religious programmes to Hot FM, Orient FM or any other media outfit, if the spotted media segregation is not stopped by the management of the Heartland FM, Owerri
Rev. Prof. Ben Onyeukwu,
A theologian/journalist writes
from Owerri,Imo State,Nigeria.
