Business leaders group urges Congress to act on ABS-CBN franchise renewal

A group of top-level business managers on Wednesday called on Congress to act fast on the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise on the heels of the National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) order for the broadcast company to stop operations nationwide.

“We in the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) had fervently hoped that this day would never come as we, together with other business organizations, strongly urged Congress to consider in a timely and judicious manner the renewal of ABS-CBN’s broadcasting franchise,” MAP president Francisco Ed Lim said in a statement Wednesday.

“We reiterate in the strongest possible terms our plea for Congress to act swiftly, especially at this time when we all must act as one nation for the sake of our country.”

ABS-CBN’s 25-year broadcast franchise expired on May 4, 2020 after several bills for its renewal were stalled.

The expiration of the company’s franchise compelled the NTC to issue a cease and desist order on Tuesday. 

The telecommunications regulator directed ABS-CBN to stop operating in various television and radio broadcasting stations nationwide.

The NTC, which earlier said it would grant a provisional authority (PA) to allow ABS-CBN to continue operations, has given the company 10 days from receipt of the order to respond.

NTC Deputy Commissioner Edgardo Cabarios clarified that the commission deemed it legally proper to issue a cease and desist order and not issue a provisional authority to ABS-CBN due to a pending quo warranto petition in the Supreme Court questioning the network’s franchise.

In February, Solicitor General Jose Calida and his office filed a quo warranto petition against ABS-CBN asking the Supreme Court to forfeit its franchise as well as if subsidiary ABS-CBN Convergence, Inc.

“It’s a sad day for media freedom and the thousands of people and their families who will be adversely affected by the closure of ABS-CBN,” Lim said.

According to its website, MAP is a 68-years-old management organization whose over 1,000 members represent a cross-section of chief executive officers, chief operating officers, and the other top management practitioners from the largest local and multinational companies operating in the Philippines.

MAP also counts some top management educators and government officials as its members. --KBK, GMA News