A religious group reminds those who killed the ABSCBNfranchise that history never forgets.
MANILA -- Congressmen on Friday voted to "kill" a new broadcast franchise for ABS-CBN Corp., permanently shutting down a major part of the country’s largest media network, in what is seen as part of a worsening crackdown on press freedom under President Rodrigo Duterte.
"It is what it is--a denial of a privilege granted by the State because the applicant was seen as undeserving of the grant of a legislative franchise." Echoing Duterte's issues against ABS-CBN, Cayetano was also a vocal critic of the network, often citing new reports and interviews he deemed unfavorable to him.The vote puts in jeopardy the jobs of more than 11,000 workers under the ABS-CBN group, particularly its broadcast business whose programs enjoyed a massive reach of more than 80 million Filipinos here and abroad.
Bills pushing for a new ABS-CBN franchise had been stuck at the House franchise committee since 2014, and didn't move until public pressure over the NTC shutdown order prompted congressmen to hear the application in earnest. The president accepted the apology and Malacañang later said that he would be "neutral" on the franchise application. ABS-CBN's shutdown last May came nearly 50 years after the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos seized the network shortly after declaring martial law in 1972.
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate lamented how ABS-CBN was made to "go through the eye of the needle" by a joint House panel when franchise hearings were traditionally swift and non-contentious.
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