The Office of Communications in the United Kingdom (Ofcom), has sanctioned religious channel, Loveworld, owned by popular Nigerian pastor, Chris Oyakhilome.
The UK’s communications regulator reportedly fined the channel the sum of £125,000 approximately N65.6m, over COVID-19 sermon disseminated on the channel.
Ofcom in a statement stated that the station was fined for breaching the country’s broadcasting code by disseminating misinformation on COVID-19.
The statement reads,
“Today we have fined Loveworld £125,000 for this breach of the broadcasting code. This was the second time in a year that the broadcaster breached our rules on accuracy in news and harm in its coverage of the coronavirus.
On December 1 2020, Loveworld aired a 29-hour programme called the Global Day of Prayer, during which claims were made about the COVID-19″.
According to the agency, these claims included the notion that the outbreak was ‘planned’, that the ‘sinister’ vaccine can be used to implant ‘nanochips’ that can control and cause harm to members of the public and the debunked theory that the virus was somehow caused by 5G.
The statement further read,
“Ofcom stresses that legitimate debate about the official response to the coronavirus pandemic is fundamental to holding public authorities to account during a global health crisis - particularly when public freedoms are curtailed and complex policy decisions are being taken.
“However, the inaccurate and potentially harmful claims made during this programme were unsupported by any factual evidence and went entirely without challenge. Ofcom was particularly concerned that this breach followed previous, similar breaches in 2020 during the investigation of which, Loveworld Limited gave Ofcom a number of assurances as to how it would improve its compliance procedures.”
This is coming after the popular Nigerian preacher criticized other Pastors who are advising their members to take the COVID-19 Vaccine.
Pastor Chris said God made them healers and hinted that the vaccine is not needed because when one believes in Christ, there will be power in their mouths.
