ABS-CBN confirms director proposed shutdown, but opposed by majority

ABS-CBN Corp. confirmed Wednesday that one of its directors proposed shutting down the company without addressing employee obligations, as it pushed back against “public relations attacks” while clarifying that the biggest pension fund drop was due to payouts to retrenched workers after its franchise loss.

The company said the director made the proposal without addressing employee obligations, but records show that majority of the directors “strongly argued” for continued financial support for the company’s employees, retirees, and other stakeholders.

The media company did not identify which director made the proposal. Board members include Carlo Katigbak, Federico "Piki" Lopez, Rafael Lopez, and independent directors Honorio Poblador IV, Emmanuel De Dios, and Randolf David.

In the same statement, ABS-CBN belied what it described as “public relations attacks” concerning its retirement fund, dismissing reports that 68 individuals received preferred treatment as lies.

“Contrary to what the article claims, the largest decline in ABS-CBN’s pension fund was due to payouts to close to 6,000 employees who were retrenched as a result of the franchise loss. This is proof of ABS-CBN’s commitment to fully meet all its obligations to its employees,” the statement read.

“From ABS-CBN’s perspective, we acknowledge that, following the loss of our franchise in 2020, we have experienced challenging financial years but have shown steady, consistent improvement. Our Board of Directors and the rest of the Lopez family have commended the company’s progress and emphasized its existence as important to the country,” it added.

According to the company, majority of the individuals are retirees who have received partial or no retirement benefits despite already leaving the company, as they have agreed to voluntarily wait until the firm’s financial position improves.

“They did not get preferential treatment. In fact, they deferred receipt of payment so that the thousands of employees who were separated from the company received their separation in full,” it said.

The company also reiterated that the supposed P2-billion capital infusion into the company to pay out retirement benefits were false allegations, and has already been refuted by majority of the board of directors.

“These public PR attacks on ABS-CBN’s pension fund, its business performance, and its leadership prove that the individual/s behind these releases do not have the best interests of the company at heart,” it said.

“The series of press releases claims that many of the decisions around ABS-CBN are not in line with proper stewardship or good investment. We leave it to the public to decide whether those actions remain true to the family’s espoused values,” it added.

ABS-CBN was ordered by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to stop operating its various television and radio stations nationwide absent a valid congressional franchise which lapsed on May 4, 2020.

The bills seeking franchise renewal for ABS-CBN have been pending since 2014 but the House only decided to start its deliberations on these proposals on March 10, 2020.

The House Committee on Legislative Franchise in July 2020 voted to deny ABS-CBN’s franchise application, adopting a committee resolution recommending the denial of the network’s franchise application through 70 yes votes, 11 no votes, and three who did not participate.

The NTC then recalled all frequencies and channels assigned to ABS-CBN Corp. in September 2020. — RSJ, GMA News