BROADCAST FREQUENCIES | Journalists’ group questions granting of ABS-CBN’s former frequencies to Duterte allies

January 26, 2022 , 06:22 PM

By Clarist Zablan

(January 26, 2022) – A journalists’ group on Wednesday questioned the decision of the government’s telecommunications regulatory agency to assign the television frequencies of the country’s broadcast network to different companies which have links to President Rodrigo Duterte.

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) took back the frequencies of the Lopez family-owned ABS-CBN after a committee at the lower house of Congress denied the company a legislative franchise in 2020.

In a statement, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said it doubted if the NTC had conducted due diligence when it awarded one of the frequencies to Advanced Media Broadcasting System (AMBS) Inc, a company owned by business tycoon Manuel Villar. Villar’s family is allied with Duterte. His wife is a sitting senator and his daughter is a congresswoman. His son was in the Cabinet as public works and highways secretary.

“As regulatory processes can be used against perceived critics, they can also be used to favor allies like the powerful Villar family, which has a member in the legislative branch and, until last year, one in the president’s Cabinet,” NUJP said in a statement.

“We are concerned at the concentration of power in a corporate media landscape already dominated by conglomerates and political clans. This has dire implications on the people’s right to relevant information especially during times of crisis.”

The NTC also did not make a “traditional public selection process” which required a public hearing and allowed ABS-CBN to contest the award. The NUJP also said the AMBS has limited capability to run a television network.

The NTC gave one of ABS-CBN’s television and radio frequencies to AMBS, granting it a provisional authority to install, operate, and maintain a digital TV broadcasting system in Metro Manila using Channel 16. The channel was previously assigned to ABS-CBN before they were denied congressional franchise renewal in 2020.

Prime Asset Ventures Inc, a company owned by Villar’s son Paolo, holds a controlling stake in AMBS through Planet Cable.

The NTC has also assigned channels 23 and 43, which were also previously ABS-CBN’s frequencies, to Aliw Broadcasting Corp and Sonshine Media Network Inc (SMNI), respectively. SMNI was founded and owned by Duterte’s spiritual adviser Apollo Quiboloy. Aliw, on the other hand, is controlled by another family who has an existing radio station, newspapers and magazines.

In separate statements, the NTC said AMBS, Aliw Broadcasting, and SMNI were granted provisional authorities after legal, technical, and financial qualifications have been determined.

The regulatory agency also sought policy guidance from the information and communication technology department, legal opinion from the justice department, and the concurrence of the office of the executive secretary, it said in the statements.

Infrastructure watchdog Infrawatch PH described the move as an “almost midnight deal,” warning the development will dampen investor confidence as it showed serious political risk on future investments in the country.

“Like in many instances in this administration, what is legally and procedurally sound is not necessarily correct nor acceptable to the public,” Infrawatch said in a statement. “Parceling these frequencies leaves a bad taste in the mouth given that the Duterte administration is already in its final months, and it sure looks like an almost midnight deal with these media entities.”

(MM)

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