Consortium on Democracy and Disinformation slams Congress regarding ABS-CBN franchise renewal outcome

• They added that other government agencies already proved that said issues were baseless.
• Some of the issues mentioned are Gabby Lopez’s citizenship, labor issues, tax issues, and said political bias of the network. 

A group of journalists, academics, and civil society representatives slammed Congress’ denial of ABS-CBN Broadcast Corporation’s application for a fresh 25-year franchise.

In a statement, the Consortium on Democracy and Disinformation said that other government agencies already addressed the allegations made against the media giant.

However, still, an overwhelming 70 lawmakers voted on denying its bid for a new franchise.

This may result in leaving over 11,000 Filipinos jobless in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The group also stated that the House’s attempts at upholding the alleged violations held against the network despite government agencies saying otherwise is classified as disinformation.

“Despite the manifest unfairness of the hearings conducted, and the miraculously efficient 40-page report the Technical Working Group released 24 hours or so after the last hearing, the Cayetano Congress could not and cannot stop the truth from coming out: Other government agencies proved that the main issues thrown against ABS-CBN were baseless,” they wrote in the statement.

“For the Cayetano Congress to minimize these agencies’ findings and insist that these issues remain valid is to spread disinformation.”

One issue is about the citizenship of ABS-CBN’s chairman emeritus Gabby Lopez which the Bureau of Immigration already stated that he is a Filipino despite holding a dual-citizenship. The Department of Labor also debunked statements against the network by saying that it is compliant to its standards.

The Philippine Depositary Receipts also did not indicate the transfer of ownership to foreigners, said the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Adding to this, the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority stated that the company pays their due taxes and has no tax shields.