Zubiri: Majority of senators back ABS-CBN franchise renewal

MANILA, Philippines — The majority of 24 senators are backing the renewal of  ABS-CBN’s franchise, Senate  Majority  Leader  Juan Miguel Zubiri said Tuesday.

“It’s a majority. I  can’t give you the exact number but on my headcount, the majority support it,” Zubiri said.

I don’t think it will have a difficult time here in the Senate,” he added.

But senators would not be able to vote on  ABS-CBN’s franchise until a bill seeking to extend it for another 25 years has been approved by the House of Representatives and transmitted to the Senate.

The franchise bill, however, remains pending at the lower chamber.

Zubiri said many senators are “sympathizers” of ABS-CBN.

Among them, he said, are Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III,   Senators  Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., chairman of the Senate committee on public information and mass media, and Grace Poe,  head of the Senate committee on public services, and Sonny Angara.

Edited by MUF