MANILA, Philippines — Senate Minority leader Franklin Drilon on Wednesday lamented the seeming callousness of the House of Representatives for the plight of ABS-CBN’s workers who might be displaced if a provisional franchise is not granted by August.
Drilon said the decision of House leaders to proceed with the network’s 25-year franchise instead of a provisional one gave the impression that ABS-CBN’s 11,000 workers are not important to them.
“Sinabi naman ni (House) Speaker (Alan Peter) Cayetano na wala ng panahon. Siguro sa kanila hindi mahalaga yung trabaho ng 11,000 empleyado ng ABS-CBN,” Drilon said in an interview over ABS-CBN’s online streaming of Teleradyo.
(House Speaker Cayetano said there is no more time. For them, maybe ABS-CBN’s 11,000 employees are not important.)
The House leadership decided to instead push with the deliberations on ABS-CBN’s bid for a 25-year franchise, despite the Senate’s ongoing deliberations on the network’s five-month provisional franchise.
“Yung hearing kahapon, iyon ay para sa five-month provisional franchise. Kaya binilisan naming, nagkaroon kami ng hearing in advance, ngunit hindi na magagawa dahil ayaw na ng HoR sa provisional franchise,” Drilon said.
(The hearing yesterday was for the five-month provisional franchise. That’s why we hastened it, we had a hearing in advance, but it can’t be done anymore since HoR does not want a provisional franchise anymore.)
The senator also expressed concern over the network’s employees after ABS-CBN president and chief executive officer Carlo Katigbak said that the company might start retrenching by August if it fails to get either a provisional or a new franchise.
“Malungkot po iyan ngunit nasa HoR at sa administrasyon kung ano ang kanilang tingin sa 11,000 (employees). Nobody will get harmed kung bigyan kahit ng provisional franchise ang ABS-CBN. Walang masasagasaan, walang masasaktan. Ang masasagasaan yung 11,000 employees ng ABS-CBN,” Drilon said.
(It’s sad but it’s up to the HoR and the administration on what they think of the 11,000. Nobody will get harmed if they give ABS-CBN a provisional franchise. The 11,000 ABS-CBN employees are those who will be harmed.)
ABS-CBN was forced to go off the air on May 5 in compliance with National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) cease and desist order as the network’s franchise lapsed May 4.
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