Rep. Remulla sees 'ripe case' vs. NTC exec over ABS-CBN's TV Plus operations sans franchise

Cavite Representative Crispin Remulla on Monday said he sees a "ripe case" against Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) before the Office of the Ombudsman for supposedly continuing to allow ABS-CBN to air programs through its digibox even as its franchise has already expired.

During the resumption of the House joint panel hearings on the ABS-CBN franchise issue, Remulla quizzed Cordoba on the operations of ABS-CBN TV Plus, through which ABS-CBN airs digital channels.

Cordoba said that it was clear in a provisional authority the NTC issued to ABS-CBN in May 2019 that the digital broadcasts of ABS-CBN are anchored on its previous franchise.

He also agreed when Remulla asked him if all the broadcasts of ABS-CBN through TV Plus are covered by its previous franchise which had already expired last May 4.

With this, Remulla asked Cordoba why the NTC allowed the continuous operation of ABS-CBN TV Plus with an expired franchise.

Cordoba, in response, denied that NTC did not act to stop the operations of TV Plus.

"Pagka-issue kasi namin ng cease and desist order, after a few days ay umakyat agad ang ABS-CBN sa Korte Suprema. So lahat ng aksyon namin dahil iniisip namin yung case na pending sa Supreme Court ay ayaw naming magkamali," he said.

"Kaya ang aming ginawa, humingi kami ng tulong sa Office of the Solicitor General which is our statutory counsel," he added.

Cordoba said the OSG advised them to issue an alias cease and desist order to Channel 43, the channel which ABS-CBN supposedly uses for digital broadcasting.

But Remulla said the Supreme Court did not issue a temporary restraining order against NTC, so there was nothing that would prevent the commission from acting to stop the operations of TV Plus.

"I believe that we already found a ground for this committee to file a case with the Ombudsman against Commissioner Cordoba because he has willfully disobeyed the power of Congress to issue franchises and allowing an entity to operate without a franchise and earn money at the same time," Remulla said.

"Because they have committed an ultra vires act, we have a ripe case for the Ombudsman," he added.

The House Committee on Legislative Franchises and on Good Government and Public Accountability began hearing the bills granting another 25-year franchise to ABS-CBN after the House leadership decided to drop the measure that would supposedly give the network a provisional franchise until October 31, 2020.

Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, himself an author of the provisional franchise bill, has said the issue on the ABS-CBN franchise has already become "so divisive" and is taking up the time even as there are more pressing matters to discuss such as that of COVID-19 response measures.

He, however, vowed to have a fair and comprehensive hearings on the issue at the committee level. --KBK, GMA News