SAGIP Party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta scolded National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) Chairman Gamaliel Cordoba Wednesday, Aug. 24 for supposedly being remiss in investigating the shuttered ABS-CBN after the House of Representatives denied the network's application for franchise renewal back in 2020.
Marcoleta, during a briefing by the House Committee on Legislative Franchises, reminded Cordoba of the alleged numerous violations of the television and radio giant during the lower chamber's high-profile hearings on the network two years ago.
Before this, Cordoba bared to the panel that they acknowledged just one past violation of ABS-CBN--when it failed to seek NTC's permission in airing a pay-per-view (PPV) event.
"If he is talking only of the PPV violation, I don't think that is complete," Marcoleta said of the NTC chief.
"Did he not also consider the violations like the lack of permit on the encryption of the content and the encryption of the signal, is also a violation and it lasted for several years, not only weeks and days, Mr. Chair," Marcoleta said following Cordoba's comments on the recent deal between ABS-CBN and another local network, TV5.
The controversial deal, which Marcoleta has been questioning for the past few weeks, was the main topic of Wednesday's virtual briefing.
Referring to ABS-CBN, the SAGIP solon said: "It has no permit for the digital broadcast of it 11 channels, Mr. Chair. Also, ABS-CBN violated the cease and desist order. It also sold millions of black boxes throughout the land because, without which, the encrypted content cannot be viewed by our people, that's why, that is the reason why they violated their free to air contracts."
In response, Cordoba said: "Yun pong mga binanggit na violations po ni Congressman Marcoleta (Regarding the violations mentioned by Congressman Marcoleta), we will look into it, per detail po iyon (that must be discussed per detail).
"We cannot say that it's a violation right now or hindi, depende po yan sa magiging labas po ng amin investigation. Kasi po magkakaroon po yan ng notice and hearing po sa concerned corporation (It will depend on the result of our investigation. We will send a notice to the concerned corporation and hold hearings)," he added.
This didn't sit well with Marcoleta.
"Mr. Cordoba, sinabi ko naman sayo noon na umpisahan mo nang usisahin at imbestigahan. Matagal na yun eh, 2020 pa yun. Dalawang taon po ang nakakaraan. Bakit naman hindi mo kasi sinimulan (I told you back then to start reviewing it and to investigate it. That was back in 2020. Two years have already passed. Why didn't you start it)," said the veteran solon in a disappointed tone.
"As a matter of fact I remember telling the NTC chairman, if he has already computed all the violations established during the hearings and I was told initially that the amount of the violation is insignificant," he recalled.
"Of course I beg to disagree with him because I made a detailed computation of all these detailed violations, and I came up with trillion-peso violations, Mr. Chair," Marcoleta said, referring to alleged tax liabilities of ABS-CBN.
"(Cordoba) should have included them in the context of violations as per the provision of the Public Service Act which is P200 per day, per violation," he said.
Marcoleta noted that NTC could have exercised its motu proprio function of voluntarily probing ABS-CBN based on the findings of the House during its franchise renewal hearings two years ago.
"These are all obligations that the NTC should have investigated in the first place. Kahit naman siguro walang magdemanda or mag-asunto sa inyong opisina, Mr. Chairman, motu proprio, kasi kasama kayo noong inimbestigahan natin yan. And ito'y public knowledge (Even if nobody files a case or complaint before your office, Mr. Chairman, motu proprio, before you were with us when we investigated that and this is public knowledge).
"Motu proprio, you can investigate already because that is the reason why the franchise wasn't renewed in the first place. Wala siyang permit for digital broadcast (It didn't have ...it lasted for several years Mr. Chair," he explained.