Poe wants 'utmost study, scrutiny' of House bill revoking SMNI franchise

The bill revoking the franchise of Swara Sug Media Corp., which operates Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI), should undergo "utmost study and scrutiny" by the Senate, Senator Grace Poe said Thursday.

"To my knowledge, this is the first instance that a proposal for a franchise revocation has made significant progress in Congress," Poe, who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Services, told GMA News Online.

"We should subject this to utmost study and scrutiny as this shall set a precedent for future legislative franchises."

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on third and final reading House Bill 9710, which revokes Swara Sug’s franchise due to alleged willful dissemination of false information and transfer of ownership without congressional approval, among others.

The passage of HB 9710 is now in the hands of the Senate as under the 1987 Constitution, all appropriation, revenue or tariff bills, bills authorizing increase of the public debt, bills of local application, and private bills shall originate exclusively in the House of Representatives, but the Senate may propose or concur with the amendments.

In deliberating the measure, Poe said the Senate panel will be guided by the principle that a franchise is a privilege and that grantees should always abide by the tenets of fairness and public welfare.

Poe said the Senate panel will act on HB 9710 once it is transmitted to the chamber and referred to her committee.

While she made the remark, Poe said its prioritization would depend on the Senate leadership as they set the pace on the bills that will be passed by the chamber.

"The Committee shall seek the consensus of the body on this. No franchise bill has ever been listed as a priority so I defer to the leadership as to the pace of its disposition," she said.

"We have always taken into consideration the other Chamber's priorities but the Senate has never been in the tradition of railroading any measure. All bills are thoroughly debated and major stakeholders are respectfully consulted without exception," Poe added.

Poe went on and related the Senate's prioritization of bills to the ongoing Charter change moves in the House of Representatives. "Whether it’s a constitutional amendment or a legislative franchise, the Senate prioritizes measures according to the needs of the country. The people sets the deadline; we just listen," she said.

In a separate text message to reporters, Senator Imee Marcos said she doesn't see "any cogent reason" why HB 9710 should not be treated like any other bill.

Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa, who earlier said he is Quiboloy's friend, echoed the sentiment of his colleagues and said that the bill against SMNI's franchise should be treated as an ordinary bill.

"We will just take it as an ordinary bill. Kung kinakailangan i-prioritize, eh di sa liderato ng Senado kung anong desisyon n'ya para sa treatment ng bill na 'yan. Pero ako, hindi ako mananawagan na gawing priority," Dela Rosa told reporters in a phone interview.

(We will just take it as an ordinary bill. If that would be prioritized, then it will depend on the decision of the Senate leadership. But for me, I will not call for it to be prioritized.)

On the other hand, Vice President Sara Duterte on Thursday advised the broadcasting network to seek legal options to save their operations.

“What I would suggest sa SMNI is to consult their lawyers kung ano ‘yung mga pwedeng (about the possible) legal options with regard to their franchise,” Duterte said in an ambush interview in Cambodia.

Duterte is a known ally of Quiboloy, who is accused of child abuse and human trafficking. She earlier said the pastor deserves to be given a fair trial in the right court.

The House bill on SMNI franchise was filed by 1-Rider party-list Representative Rodge Gutierrez after SMNI aired an episode wherein anchor Eric Celiz accused Speaker Martin Romualdez of splurging over P1 billion in foreign trips, a comment that Celiz later apologized for and said was inaccurate.

Congress granted Swara Sug’s franchise in 2019.

Apart from HB 9710, the House of Representatives has also approved on final reading Resolution of Both Houses No. 7, which amends certain economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.

On RBH7, Marcos said that the House of Representatives' passage "should not affect the pace and manner by which the Senate conducts the deliberations" on its counterpart measure.

Further, Marcos reiterated the issue on voting on the amendments to the constitution.

"I think one very important issue that should be addressed is the set of rules that will govern the voting procedure of the Constituent Assembly," the senator said.

A win vs fake news

Members of the House of Representatives said that the revocation of the SMNI franchise is a win for the Filipino people because it is a step towards countering fake news.

House Deputy Majority Leader Jude Acidre of Tingog party-list said SMNI clearly violated their franchise by spreading disinformation.

“Clearly, SMNI has not met the standard required. What they did, as the evidence would show, is actually an affront to press freedom. Those in the media who work so hard to maintain standards in carrying out their profession won’t feel right when they [in the SMNI] take lightly of accountability,” Acidre said.

“Filipinos won’t be the losers here if there is less fake news, less political propaganda. They won’t lose when there is truthfulness in the report, and when there is accuracy and accountability in the discharge of the journalists’ duties,” Acidre added.

Opposition lawmakers, who were among the over 280 lawmakers who voted for SMNI franchise revocation like Acidre, agreed that Filipinos stand to lose nothing with SMNI off the air.

“The Filipino people cannot lose because SMNI stands for misinformation and propaganda, as well as red-tagging under the previous Duterte administration,” House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro said in a press conference.

“This is a win for the Filipino people because it is a step towards stopping peddlers of fake news, peddlers of disinformation and red-taggers who link our fellow citizens to armed groups just for having an advocacy,” Kabataan party-list lawmaker Raoul Manuel added.

House Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela party-list lawmaker Arlene Brosas, for her part, expressed confidence that the Senate will heed the call of their House colleagues when it comes to SMNI franchise revocation.

“SMNI is peddling disinformation and misinformation, and I’m sure we have discerning Senators. They won’t allow falsehoods to be perpetuated,” Brosas said.

“They should not stand in the way of finding out the truth,” Brosas added.—with reports from Giselle Ombay, Llanesca Panti/KBK/RF/AOL, GMA Integrated News