The Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, operators of Emmanuel TV, has debunked reports suggesting that the Station’s planned exit from all pay television platforms such as DStv, GOtv, StarSat etc may have been influenced by a BBC Report on the late founder of the Church, Pastor TB Joshua.

According to sources in the Media department of the Church, the decision to exit from all pay television platforms was made public to members and non-members of the Church way back in December 2023.

The decision followed the broad objective of the Church to bring the word of God and true evangelism to the doorsteps of all Nigerians regardless of class while deploying the cheapest and most affordable means possible.

However, after realizing that pay television is pricy and therefore unaffordable to the poor and low income earners who form a large percentage of the Churches membership, a strategy was devised to reach those at the lower rungs of the income ladder through the option of free-to-air television with high definition (HD) capacity.

This innovative approach culminated in the independent decision to commence a phased exit from pay television platforms with effect from 27th January, 2024.

“Last month (December, 2023), the Synagogue Church of all Nations, SCOAN, announced the exit of Emmanuel TV, from all pay cable TV platforms especially on DSTV and GOTV from 17th January, 2024, as Emmanuel TV will now be aired on free to air high definition decoder.

“Aside making the announcement before the congregation, the decision was backed up with a leaflet to guide the members, and Emmanuel TV on how to access the channel on the free to air decoder. In addition, the church has repeatedly aired the information on Emmanuel TV for the benefit of its viewers.

The announcement partly read, ” Emmanuel TV will no longer air on DSTV and GOTV (DTH & DTT), from the 17th of January 2024 at 10:59pm GMT+1, and subsequently on all platforms. Emmanuel TV is now airing on free to air (FTA) high definition decoder”.

SCOAN said that going on free to air is in line with the mission of the church to spread the gospel and ensure the message of salvation reaches the entire world free of charge.

“Its however surprising to begin to link the exit of Emmanuel TV from the stables of MultiChoice to the BBC report that was aired early this week.”

In a related development, a source in MultiChoice Nigeria, operators of the DStv platform, who craved anonymity also corroborated SCOAN’s position that indeed the decision to exit pay television platforms in Nigeria is unconnected with the recent BBC documentary.

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