Senate employees’ union back ABS-CBN workers amid franchise woes

MANILA, Philippines — “Let us not deprive our people their right to information (and) job security.”

A union of Senate employees said this as it appealed to lawmakers to “side with the people” amid franchise woes faced by broadcast network ABS-CBN.

The Sandigan ng mga Empleyadong Nagkakaisa sa Adhikain ng Demokratikong Organisasyon (S.E.N.A.D.O.) issued the statement on Wednesday after the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) filed a quo warranto petition at the Supreme Court against seeking to forfeit the franchise of ABS-CBN.

“We sympathize with the 11,000 workers of ABS-CBN who are facing job loss in the offing as a consequence of the administration’s effort to silence critics of the administration,” the union said.

“We firmly stand with the workers of ABS-CBN that such action is not only aimed at attacking ABS-CBN but also an assault to workers’ rights particularly to their job security and to live decently,” it added.

It said that in ending the franchise of the broadcast giant, the lives of its workers, their families, including the future of their children, would be placed under  “great peril” and become “casualties” in the “retaliation” against ABS-CBN.

“S.E.N.A.D.O. is on our firm ground to protect and defend workers and employees right to job security,” it said.

“We express our support and sympathy to the workers of ABS-CBN and condemns all forms of harassment and vilification of people critical to any wrongdoings, unjust policies of the state, commits abuse of authority and people who use power to silence critics, suppress freedom of expression and press freedom,” it added.

S.E.N.A.D.O. said that as public servants, “we view that it is the responsibility of the state to establish these rights such as the freedom of the press, right to information, to protect labor and promote full employment including end of contractualization.”

“Let us not deprive our people their right to information and let us not deprive our workers (of) job security and decent wage,” the union said.

Through the quo warranto petition, Solicitor General Jose Calida said the Supreme Court should revoke the congressional franchise of ABS-CBN and its subsidiary, ABS-CBN Convergence Inc., for allegedly violating its terms and the Constitution.

In filing the petition, Calida cited “highly abusive practices” of the network “benefiting a greedy few at the expense of millions of its loyal subscribers.”

ABS-CBN, however, maintained it did not violate any law governing its franchise and that it had secured all necessary approvals for its business operations.

/atm