MANILA—A lawmaker on Friday said he believes the National Telecommunications Commission felt pressured by the Office of the Solicitor General when it issued the closure order against ABS-CBN.
“I totally agree with Speaker Cayetano. If you will analyze everything, it was the meddling of OSG [Jose] Calida that led to the closure of ABS-CBN,” Surigao del Sur 2nd District Rep. Johnny Pimentel said on ANC’s “Headstart.”During a March 10 hearing, Pimentel said he asked if the NTC would grant provisional authority to the network. The agency, he said, assured the committee based on the opinion of the justice department that it would.
But while the NTC did not break the law by issuing the CDO, Pimentel said the agency kept silent when it allowed other companies with expired franchises to operate. “It states that all permits that are necessary to operate shall be valid 60 days after the lifting of the quarantine so in this case July 15, is the date that ABS-CBN should have been allowed to operate,” Pimentel said.
With the recent development, Pimentel said he believes it is imperative for Congress to act on the matter.
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