House Committee of the Whole approves bill for ABS-CBN provisional franchise

The House of Representatives Committee of the Whole approved on Wednesday afternoon House Bill 6732, which grants ABS-CBN a temporary franchise to operate until October 31, 2020. 

The bill filed by Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano acknowledges the contribution of the network in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“The untimely shutdown of ABS-CBN affects the efforts of the government in fighting the pandemic by depriving tens of millions of Filipinos access to potentially life saving information. It creates a gap in our most important defense against the virus - our ability to tell the population to stay home and save lives."

It also condemned the shuttering of the network by the National Telecommunications Commission as an unexpected and unconscionable act.

“It not only disrupted the essential work of Congress, and sowed intrigue and disunity among the different branches of government and our people - it was also done during this period in crisis.” 

The bill was co-sponsored by Representatives Neptali Gonzalez, Raneo Abu, Roberto Puno, Dan Fernandez, LRay Villafuerte Jr., Ferdinand Romualdez, and Jose Antonio Sy-Alvarado.

ABS-CBN shut its TV and radio operations last May 5 after the National Telecommunications Commission released a cease and desist order against the network. Its legislative franchise expired on May 4.

In April, the House of Representatives promised to fast-track ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal. Cayetano later admitted that they were sidelined by the Taal Volcano eruption in January and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.