Duterte has no hand in House’s actions on ABS-CBN franchise —Cayetano

President Rodrigo Duterte has no hand in the actions of the House of Representatives on the issue of the ABS-CBN franchise, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said Thursday.

In an interview with reporters, Cayetano said that what the President only wants the House of Representatives to do is to "just be fair."

"The President has never told me to grant or not grant the [ABS-CBN franchise], and kung titingnan mo ang attitude ng Presidente, sa confirmation, sa mga secretary, kung anong teritoryo ng Kongreso, sa Kongreso 'yan. Anong teritoryo nung Executive, sa Executive," he said.

Nevertheless, Cayetano said they definitely still want the Office of the Solicitor General and the National Telecommunications Commission to present and explain their side during the hearings.

"Hindi nila puwedeng sabihin sub judice. I-explain n'yo para 'yung tao makapag-decide on their own kung tama o mali. Kami, hindi pa namin hinuhusgahan 'yung SolGen kung tama 'yung allegations niya o mali," he added.

Cayetano himself and seven other House leaders filed House Bill 6732, which grants ABS-CBN a provisional franchise until October 31, 2020.

The measure was approved on second reading on Wednesday last week, the same day it was filed and also approved by the House constituting as the Committee of the Whole.

However, it was reverted to the plenary on Monday afternoon to accommodate additional interpellation and amendments from lawmakers.

Eventually, the House leaders decided to drop the provisional franchise bill and instead hear the bills granting another the broadcast network another 25-year franchise.

Members of the Makabayan Bloc, in a separate press conference earlier in the day, alleged that with the actions of Solicitor General Jose Calida and the NTC, the President may be behind the shutdown of ABS-CBN.

"Malinaw naman na noon pa man ay nagsabi ng paulit-ulit si Pangulong Duterte na magsara na lang kayo, hindi na kayo bibigyan ng prangkisa. Bigla na lang ngayon, ang ihip ng hangin, iba na," said Bayan Muna party-list Representative Ferdinand Gaite.

"Naghahanap na lang ng iba’t ibang dahilan para i-deny ag prangkisa ng ABS-CBN to the detriment ng viewing public," he added.

Gabriela Women's Party Representative Arlene Brosas also believes the executive department did some "string-pulling" to delay the return of ABS-CBN on air, albeit temporarily.

"Come to think of it, the bill on ABS-CBN interim franchise breezed through the Committee on the Whole and second reading with the consensus of the House only to be stopped in its track by notable allies of the President who called instead for discussions of the 25-year franchise," she said.

But Cayetano wondered why the House of Representatives of the 18th Congress are being blamed for the delay in the resolution of the ABS-CBN franchise issue, when proposals to renew the franchise have been filed since the 16th Congress.

He said he would rather let the House Committee on Legislative Franchises to deal with critics' concerns.

"I want to pass all of the questions to the panel because they have the autonomy now. Having said that, anyone is free to speculate at pagbintangan 'yung kabilang side," he added.

The House franchises panel is set to start hearing the bills granting ABS-CBN a 25-year franchise on Tuesday next week.

Cayetano believes the hearings will not go beyond July, and that they may be able to tackle it by August after the President's State of the Nation Address. — BM, GMA News