The House Committee on Legislative Franchise has asked those in favor and against ABS-CBN franchise renewal to submit position papers.
Committee Chairperson Franz Alvarez said it is not yet the formal start of the hearing, which could possibly start in May.
“Naging busy din po ‘yung congress noong nakaraan, marami tayong priority measures. Priority rin po ito, pero maraming prioty,” Alvarez said.
“Syempre nakukulangan kami as principal authors, gusto natin macalendar na ito sa remaining session days,” Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate said.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Alan Cayetano said he respects the move of the Senate on the matter, and assured a more organized hearing in the lower chamber.
“Maraming gustong umepal, maraming gustong maging part ng solution. Panay what if. What if may nag question? What if di payagan ng NTC? What if magunaw ang mundo tomorrow? Edi hindi na natin kailangan ang franchise ng ABS-CBN,” Cayetano said.
“But there are still a lot of facts that will come out later on, that will show that there was some lapses or at worse, na tumaya talaga ang ABS-CBN management for some candidates. We have the evidence for that,” he added.
Some congressmen expressed alarm if ABS-CBN will still be able to operate once their franchise expires, or before a formal hearing is conducted on the case.
Alvarez said the company may still operate since the matter has already happened to others before. Meanwhile, some congressmen expressed doubt on the matter.
“These are all hypothetical questions and could be answered by the issuance of the legal opinion of the DOJ,” Deputy Speaker Johnny Pimentel said. – Report from Daniel Manalastas
