Emmanuel TV, the channel owned by TB Joshua’s Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), was removed from YouTube for violating what it claims to be policies against hate speech.
At the age of 57, the preacher passed away on June 5, 2021. Currently, however, his wife Evelyn Joshua is leading SCOAN.
Earlier this month, the BBC Africa Eye published eyewitness accounts of rape, torture, and forced abortions allegedly committed by the late cleric.
Some former churchgoers claimed in the documentary that TB Joshua had forced them to have abortions inside the church in the Ikotun neighborhood of Lagos state, subjected them to sexual assault, and tortured them.
Since then, users have voiced a variety of opinions in heated discussions on social media about the report.
OpenDemocracy discovered “more than 50 videos amplifying abuse against Joshua’s accusers” on YouTube as part of their joint investigation with the BBC.
According to survivors, the purpose of the footage was to intimidate and harm the reputation of former ministry members who might choose to share their stories with the public.
Ajoke, a former church member, told openDemocracy, “The idea was to have so much humiliation filmed on tape that you are both aware of it.”
You constantly feel ashamed of it and are overcome with fear of it. So much so that it’s like your voice has been shut down by it.” After YouTube was notified of the issue, the account was suspended on January 29.
The content that was reported contained “smear campaigns against women who spoke out about TB Joshua’s sexual abuse, cases of medical misinformation, and footage of people with mental health issues being kept in chains” from Emmanuel TV.
“The flagged channel was terminated for violating our hate speech policies,” YouTube said.
With hundreds of millions of views, Emmanuel TV has over 500 thousand YouTube followers.
Its YouTube chain has been suspended for the second time in three years due to prior infractions of the user guidelines on the website.
TheCable first reported on January 17 about MultiChoice’s dethronement of Emmanuel TV’s satellite channel on DStv and GOtv.
