"Now we know what kind of official the solicitor general is."
"Now we know what kind of official the solicitor general is."
I’m glad that last week’s Senate hearing on the renewal of the franchise of media conglomerate ABS-CBN clarified many issues.
The hearing, presided by Senator Grace Poe, chair of the Committee on Public Services, allowed key ABS-CBN officers, including chairman Manolo Lopez, president and CEO Carlo Katigbak, and COO Ma. Socorro Vidanes, to directly respond to allegations raised against the network.
The three ABS-CBN executives explained why the network was not able to air Duterte’s campaign ads, and clarified that it had refunded the amount of P4 million for unused ads. A subsequent P2.7 million refund was refused by the Duterte camp.
Katigbak also apologized to the President, saying it was not the network’s intention to offend him. Duterte later accepted the apology, but asked the House to decide on the matter of the franchise renewal.
Officials from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Telecommunications Commission were one in saying that ABS-CBN had committed no violation whatsoever.
The hearing revealed that ABS-CBN did not violate the terms of its franchise, and that it fully complied with the constitutional provision on full Filipino ownership of media. It also brought out the fact that it had dutifully paid its taxes to the BIR.
Even more revealing, the entire controversy was based solely on President Duterte’s resentment over what he felt was the network’s refusal to air his campaign ads in 2016 despite having paid for them.
Given this, we can conclude that this is essentially a press freedom issue.
Duterte’s former aide, now Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go, said that the President’s feelings were hurt. “Nababoy ang Presidente,” he said. Go denied that the President was vindictive, and only harbored a grudge against ABS-CBN for airing “black propaganda” against him.
The explanations given by the ABS-CBN executives and the testimonies by several government officials that ABS-CBN did not violate any law convinced even diehard Duterte ally, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, to say that he was “one step closer” to giving his support to ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal.
Observers believe that the House of Representatives may have deliberately refused to touch the 11 bills urging the renewal of the ABS-CBN franchise because they do not want to antagonize Duterte, who had repeatedly criticized the network in public. The legislators claim that they shouldn’t prioritize the franchise renewal as they have to tackle more important measures.
While it is true that the country faces problems on numerous fronts, and that the House should address these problems promptly, it can discuss ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal even in one session. So what’s holding them back from discussing the franchise renewal issue and getting it done and over with, since Congress will adjourn on March 11 and won’t convene again until May? They owe it to the citizenry to act promptly and fairly on this vital issue of press freedom.
The Senate hearing effectively debunked Solicitor General Jose Calida’s allegations in his quo warranto petition before the Supreme Court that ABS-CBN violated its legislative franchise when it operated a pay-per-view channel through free-to-air signals, and when it sold ownership shares to foreign investors via Philippine Depositary Receipts (PDRs).
Calida’s petition against ABS-CBN appears to be yet another instance of weaponizing the law to silence those critical of the administration. Not too long ago, he used the same legal tactic to drive out of office Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno for alleged failure to submit her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs).
By asking the Supreme Court to revoke the network’s franchise, the Solicitor General wants to usurp the power of Congress. The Court and the House belong to two separate branches of government that are independent of each other. Only one of them has the job of evaluating and renewing franchises. Why is Calida, who is supposed to be the government’s top lawyer, even meddling in this one?
What we know about Calida, apart from his role in Sereno’s removal as Chief Justice, is that his family owns a security agency that has cornered deals with several government offices, such as the Department of Justice, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, National Electrification Administration, House of Representatives, National Anti-Poverty Commission, and the National Parks Development Committee. All together, his security agency has signed more than P350 million worth of contracts with these offices since 2016. Isn’t this a clear case of conflict of interest that the Constitution explicitly prohibits? Now we know what kind of public official he really is.