ABS-CBN franchise a privilege – lawmaker

MANILA, Philippines — The franchise of ABS-CBN is a matter of privilege and should not be linked to press freedom, which is a matter of right, a ranking lawmaker in the House of Representatives said yesterday.

Palawan 1st district Rep. Franz Alvarez, chair of the committee on legislative franchises, said the constitutional right to press freedom is a separate concern and will be irrelevant to the deliberations of Congress on the network’s franchise renewal.

“The issue involves the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN. There is no attempt to muzzle or control the media here, so do not try to make this a press freedom issue when it is not,” the lawmaker stressed.

“We should all be reminded that under the law, the grant of a franchise is not a right, but a privilege,” Alvarez pointed out.

He cited the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Radio Communications Philippines Inc. vs. National Telecommunications Commission, which stated that the grant of a franchise is “merely a privilege emanating from the sovereign power of the state and owing its existence to a grant, is subject to regulation by the state itself by virtue of its police power through its administrative agencies.”

Still, Alvarez promised that the House would be fair and objective in hearing ABS-CBN’s application for franchise renewal, which is supported by bills filed by at least 11 House members.

“The advice of Speaker Alan (Peter Cayetano) to us was to make sure that we would be always fair and impartial in reviewing the application of ABS-CBN, or the application of any other public utility, for that matter...This is why we have to hear all sides, and find out if ABS-CBN violated the provisions of its franchise,” he hinted.

“Does the President and many others who have made statements against ABS-CBN’s election coverage and election ad placement system have a legitimate grievance against ABS-CBN? Did ABS-CBN violate the provisions of its franchise? Can ABS-CBN credibly defend its privilege of being granted a renewal of its franchise? These are just some of the questions that our committee will seek to answer when we conduct hearings on the matter once Congress resumes session three weeks from now,” Alvarez added. 

ABS-CBN’s franchise to operate is set to expire in March. 

Under Republic Act No. 3846, radio and television broadcast stations are required to seek a franchise from Congress before being allowed to operate.