The Three Church Mother Bodies have condemned the suspension of Prime TV broadcasting license by the Independent Broadcasting Authority for thirty days over broadcasts that are deemed to have potential to cause unrest.
The Council of Churches in Zambia, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia and Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops says the decision by the Independent Broadcasting Authority to suspend Prime TV is not only embarrassing to the Government, but also it shows how dead the consciences of those in Government have become.
They noted that it is clear for every well-meaning Zambian to draw a line between the Government owned media institutions ZNBC, Zambia Daily Mail and Times of Zambia and Prime TV in terms of professional and balanced coverage of news in the country.
The Church Mother Bodies said it is also their view that the grounds IBA has used to suspend the broadcasting license of Prime TV must have been applied first on the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC), Zambia Daily Mail and Times of Zambia before applying them on any other media house.
They further said that it is hypocritical to allow the suspension of a broadcasting license of a Private Media House when Government owned and controlled media outlets HAVE MISERABLY BEEN UNPROFESSIONAL AND UNETHICAL in the manner they cover news in the country, more especially during election times.
They said both Government and IBA need to have recourse to the biblical principle as enshrined in the Gospel of Mathew 7:3-5 that a man cannot remove a speck from their brother’s eye when they themselves have not first removed the plunk from their own eye.
In a joint statement issued to the media the Church Mother Bodiea have called for an end to this kind of behavior which arguably potray double standards being applied and does not promote the democratic credentials of our beloved country.
They noted that Office bearers have the duty to ensure that the law is applied fairly on all citizens and institutions, unlike what is obtaining on the ground.
“In addition, the action by IBA has the potential of being construed as a harassment and intimidation of institutions that do not dance to the tune of the Government and the ruling party, and constitutes a threat to democracy.
The suspension will also negatively affect the employees of the private media house and their families. We hope that Prime TV will use and exhaust every legal channel in this matter to pursue justice”, they added.
They have since urged the IBA to seriously consider lifting the suspension of the broadcasting license of Prime TV with immediate effect and allow the media house to operate freely without any intimidation.
Matthew 16
23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”
You didn’t condemn Prime TV when it accused the president of trying to assassinate their Delusional demigod HH. Keep chewing reading your fictional novel and collecting tithe you hypocrites.
Remove “mother’. Just call Three Church Bodies.
Sounds like “Mother Fyckers”.
Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be damn? I mean, not able to speak at all, as a disability? Have you ever wondered what they feel as they try to be heard? Have you ever seen a baby trying to tell someone something and that person doesn’t get? Put our democracy in that state. A free press is vital in a democracy. In fact tenets of a democratic govt include freedom of assembly, association, expression, independent judiciary, separate legislature and balanced minded executive. This, we don’t have in Zambia. Wait until you want to be heard and no platform is available for you to value freedom of the press.
Catholic Bishops.
Be honest with yourselves.
Don’t be hypocritical yourselves. Read that scripture also.
A news item last month made impact when members of the church demanded that you don’t transfer one Reverend father in Kitwe. You had also other members of the parish that demaded the transfer.
Your response? A CLOSE down. You locked up a church, the house of the lord.
Government wants to protect you and the nation against a TV station dangerous behavior you stand there and say embarrassing. Wasn’t your action embarrassing? Did Government intervene? THE 3 CHURCH MOTHER IS HIGHLY COMPROMISED.
Indeed you remove a perk in your eyes too.
What has happened to the Church?
In DRC chimochine.
Does the church want to overrule IBA.
Look at them, they now can unashamedly discredit ZNBC, a station that made the grow to their ages.
It is appalling. The church of yesteryear in Zambia defended the Law. These ones are driven by emotions and the love of money. What had come outa dialogue call you wanted to hijack? Dented with suspensions and envy and jealous and confusion. Sad.
I wonder that,THE THREE CHURCH MOTHER BODIES they are really a disappointment.
It’s like they would be HAPPY TO SEE ZAMBIA GO ON FIRE.Their political inclination is too biased.Their reason is completely out of Christian principles.They are on WAR with ECL.
Even GOD ALMIGHTY WHO IS IN HEAVEN IS DISAPPOINTED WITH BAD MOTIVES OF THE CATHOLIC AND THEIR STOOGES.(including the so called prime tv and hh)
Definitely the church mother body is anti-government. As church mother body you are supposed to preach peace and give guidance to both ruling and opposition, but such utterances can bring confusion in our country. We don’t want what happened in Rwanda to happen in our beautiful country please, better stay away from politics if you can’t give guidance.
Our constitution created parliament. Zambians from all corners vote for these lawmakers as custodians of our laws. The lawmakers on behalf of Zambians created the IBA to regulate media. The Catholics must respect the work of this institution created by Zambians. We Zambians are 70% protestant-Catholics only account for 20%. Let the will of the people prevail.
They, they , they. No specific person gave the statement. Shame
Evangelicals are protestant and are represented , as well as catholics , in this pronouncement. ..They have highlighted the double standards of tolerating state media biased coverage and punishing private media biased coverage. They have a truly valid point , as people of high moral integrity should. Let’s not live in denial , for what we are worth , as a so called proudly christian nation.
Leaders of the three Church mother bodies are very dull and their analysis of issues is pathetic. These are the people who failed academically and ran into priesthood and opening up churches. These so called readers of the three church mother bodies are failures and that is why their SENSE of judgment is very poor and most of them are school dropouts, Please people understand them, they are men of Gold and not our God. Shame on you hypocrites.
By the way, do these men of Gold not God support what Prime TV has been doing, blocking roads in Sesheke so that President ECL should not pass, sending bees and lightening with UPNDead, maligning people and spreading fake news. Its a shame to show someone that these are the pastors we have with very low IQ and caliber in our country. The three church mother bodies indeed, ROTTEN.
I have a name for the so called church bodies:
Three Trib.al Church Mother Corpses.
You hypocrites, you call your selves men of God when you’re ferocious wolves in sheep’s clothing. Your are an embarrassement to the nation. You can not cheat Him who sees the filth that is in your heart’s.
Very alarming that some people here can condemn/criticize one of the very few objective voices left for the oppressed and down trodden. What is wrong with what the church representatives have highlighted here? Isn’t it what we experience day and night? Govt. controlled media, channeled to sing praises of unabashed propaganda for the regime of the day – whilst banning independent media for any dissenting or realistic views? Those of you expressing shocking blind patronage for this autocratic ensemble of a so-called govt. will have no one to speak for you when the tide finally traps you in your ‘comfort’ corners. You shall regrettably gnash your teeth as you wallow in the muddy secretions of your own political diatribes.
First and foremost I strongly condemthrvunpslatsbkelsngusgeceehibited by some respondents, the blame entirely on the editorisl policy of ehstcI would call a ” rabid” Watch dog which seems to have no editorial policy.you publish anything anywhere any time. No wonder the bill freedom of information cannot be rolled out until we see maturity in you scribes and even public service workers who leak confidential state secretes. It easvnit likrvthst in my time. I’m retired but not tired former public servant. Who is happy to be an academician in s leading private University.Reading a statement where you want a gender neutral word to correct the current three Church Mother bodies you had to add an insult at the end, and theceditor of this “rabid”wstchv
dog went ahead tobpublish the…
Thorn in the flesh good point. The church in Kitwe at Mulenga Holy Trinity Parish ignored parishioners request to retain the priest who was able to attend to their needs. This results in a fracas and the church decided to close the parish therefore denying a huge population of its spiritual nourishment. The people have to travel to distant places for prayers and some of them have simply returned to Kachasu houses. So who’s playing double standards here? After all PTV hasn’t been closed but have just been instructed to go and do some house cleaning. Besides did the churches ask the general membership before making their statement?
This speech was written by HH and his cronies and it’s a shame the current church leadership has really lost credibility
Government should shut down Daily nation news PAPER because it is biased.
As long as someone holds unto 3 provinces , Pf will always take advantage of opposition.
Zambia needs a leader that can unite all tribes against Pf.
The problem is Zambia is HH and his brainwashed followers who thinks he can win with 3provinces
Stop insulting the Church just because truth hurts.
With due respect to the chair, Bishop Paul Mususu is a known sympathiser of the UPND and HH for instance. You what some of these leaders in church think God doesn’t know their agenda…God is God you cannot hide anything from him and the best thing is to repent your sins of greedy and deceit while it’s still shining
Stop pretending and hide under the umbrella of Mother Bodies. You are basically Father Bodies because your inclination is now know to all of us. How can you begin to insult people in Leadership by calling them to have dead conscience. Prime TV lied to the world that HH your man you support was being chased by Police and PF cadres and yet they could not show us any one pursuing HH. Police officers who were trying to disperse unruly UPND cadres fired blanks and unblock the international road. You did not convene any urgent meeting to condemn that action by your person. You have failed to bring together two parties because of you being unchristian and nothing of Christ can be seen in your conduct. In short, you are all politicians. Br. Pukuta Mwanza, you are a disappointment to us…
Government should quickly pass Laws under Ministry of Religious Affairs to regulate activities of the Church. Prime objective of the Church should be to focus on Gods Word in Jesus Christ and philanthropy. All political and activist activities should be banned. Also they should report all abuses in church and give evidence of action taken to address it.
France’s top Catholic official, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, has been convicted for his role in a sex abuse cover-up, receiving a six-month suspended jail term.
Ba’CMB’, you are fake. One can easily see who you really are. Wishing you the best!!!