Ghanaian radio contaminates listeners’ souls— Pastor Otabil

The Founder of the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC), Pastor Mensa Otabil says he hardly listens to Ghanaian radio stations for a longer period because they are very depressing and contaminate listeners’ souls.

The man of God said the longest period he spends listening to Ghanaian radio is about 15 minutes after which he turns his radio-set off.

Pastor Otabil made the revelations at the 34th-anniversary service of ICGC held last Sunday, March 4, 2018, at the church’s auditorium in Accra.

“I don’t listen to Ghanaian radio much, I will listen for maybe 15 minutes and shut off. Because it’s very depressing. It will contaminate your soul,” he said during his sermon.

Similarly, he revealed that he does not watch Ghanaian television and would instead use his time to watch animal documentaries than watching Ghanaian TV stations.

“I don’t watch Ghanaian TV much, I watch a little, one, two…three and say oh nothing has changed, go back. I will watch animals, I will watch cheetah, I will watch lion, I will watch antelope………oh yeah, I will watch antelope anytime,” Pastor Otabil told his congregants.

The man of God bemoaned the high mediocrity in the Ghanaian media, saying the Ghanaian media has failed to either maintain the excellence it used to have or better it.

“The excellence we used to have is all gone down. Instead of raising this bar higher, we’ve lowered it and lowered it and every time, we lower and lower, and lower and lower and we have huge problems,” he said.

Pastor Otabil said he would forgive American, German or British radio station if they used their airtime to take about jokes or flippant things because they have solved part of their problem but in the Ghanaian case, “we are in a mess” and yet we spend our time only on politics and other fruitless issues.

He was of the view that the Ghanaian media is obsessed with only political programmes, which have over the years not contributed to the development of the country.

“There is no political vacation in Ghana,” he said, adding “from the time the vote is cast to the time the next vote is cast, we argue politics morning, afternoon, evening… Check all your top radio talk shows, take politics out and they have nothing to talk about again”.