Transcript of Interview of Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III

On the ABS CBN franchise

Q: Maguusap po ba kayo ng mga Senador tungkol sa pagsasara sa ABS CBN?

SP Sotto: Hindi ko alam kung ano ang pwede naming pagusapan pero we already approved the resolution before na ineencourage namin yung extension, that was about it. There is nothing else we can do. What we can do is as soon as the bill is passed by the House of Representatives and it is transmitted to the Senate, then that's the time that we can (unclear) about it. We can immediately take it up and I am very optimistic that it will be passed in the Senate.

Q: Walang planong ipatawag yung NTC para pagpaliwanagin bakit ganoon pa rin yung nagging kautusan nila kahit may reso yung House at Senate na isinubmit sa kanila?

SP Sotto: I doubt it. Ano ang makukuha namin doon, eh self-explanatory yung sinasabi nila.

Q: How do you feel na nung February naghearing sa Senate, nagturn-over pa nung resolution expressing the sense of the Senate for ABS CBN to continue operating, kasi nga sa advise ni Sec. Guevara, dapat maglabas ng resolution par mag issue sila ng provisional authority, and then nagbigay po ng word yung NTC, si Cabarios (?) na ilalabas daw nila yung provisional authority and yet ngayon several days after mawarningan ni Solicitor General Calida ng possible prosecution, binawi nila yung sinabi nilang iisyuhan nila ng provisional authority. How do you feel na after what the Senate did, hindi pa rin binigyan ng provisional authority?

SP Sotto: We cannot second guess kasi what the NTC is thinking. As far as the word that we got is concerned, they were merely following the procedures of the law. Ngayon, as far as the Senate is concerned, we approved the resolution, we sent the resolution, ang problema, resolution lang yun. It does not have any force of law. So, it merely expresses the sense of the Senate. Perhaps it would be in the same line of thinking as far as the House is concerned doon sa resolution din nila, so mahirap.

Q: May plano ba kayong kausapin yung mga House leaders kasi ang sinasabi, parang the ball is now in the court of the House of Representatives?

SP Sotto: Wala kaming napapagusapang ganoon. Perhaps it is in the hands of the officers and the executives of ABS CBN at saka yung mga sponsors, there are a number of congressmen sponsoring the bill, perhaps they can talk to the leadership of the House, their committee. As far as the Senate is concerned, kung tutuusin, we can only express our sentiment, or what we think. But that's about it, we cannot do anything, we are not part of the House of representatives' system of committee work. Wala kaming magagawa, (unclear) akong nakikita. Ako pa naman, syempre alam ko ang background ng ABS, kapitbahay namin sila, I grew up in Letran. It used to be, for the benefit of those who were not born during that time, katulad nila Cely at saka yung sila Joyce, it started as Alto Broadcasting System. Owned by Tony Quirino, the brother of President Quirino. And then during that time, the Manila Chronicle, and the Chronicle building was owned by the Lopezes. They merged and it became ABS CBN in the Chronicle building beside Letran. So katabi ng Letran yan, in the late 50s, early 60s. As a matter of fact, ang Student Canteen, doon pa ginagawa sa Chronicle building, katabi ng Letran. One of my classmates, Fr. Sonny Ramirez, joined Student Canteen, ang kinanta niya yung "On the Street Where You Live" at nanalo. That's how far back I know the history of ABS CBN.

Q: Disappointed ka rin sa nangyari sa ABS CBN?

SP Sotto: We can say na yes, of course, syempre nakakalungkot na meron tayong mga kakilala, kaibigan na nagkakaroon ng problema, but hindi yung pagpapasara yung punto. Ang tingin ko dapat a few months back, or a few years back, dapat nadesisyunan na, nadesisyunan na yung franchise nila kung dapat ito napasa or kung ayaw nila, eh di ireject nila para hindi naghihintay yung mga tao, nabibitin, di ba? And they can do something about it. The important thing is a decision is reached, hindi ba? Para makakilos naman sila. Kasi ang pagkakaalam ko, 2014, may nakafile na na renewal ng franchise. Panahon pa ni President Aquino yun. So, what's the matter? Kaya maghuhula lang tayo dito, nanghuhula lang kami.

Q: Given naman na me resolution na yung House and Senate, so parang yun ngang branch ng government na magbibigay ng franchise, binigyan na ng resolution, is that enough para gawing guidelines ng NTC na magbigay sila ng provisional authority for ABS although sabi mo nga kanina, wala yung power of law, pero di ba kayo yung nagaapprove, e since sinabi ninyo na sige iaapprove namin yan, parang yung resolution, sige meron naman kaming support, bakit hindi pa bigyan? Wala bang effect yun?

SP Sotto: As I said, nung inulit ko nga, it does not have a force of law and then being a co-equal branch of government, you cannot just dictate, in much the same way as there are a number of bills that the Executive Department has sent the Senate and House na hindi namin inaapprove, na hindi kami sumasang-ayon. Pero yun meron pang certification of urgency ng Presidente, pero hindi namin napapasa. Ganoon din yun, kahit na sabihin namin ASAP, bahay nila so nasa kanila ang situation. But then again, ang pagbalik sa atin ng Executive Department, wala sa amin, nasa inyo, sa Kongreso, ang sinasabi. Eh ipasa ninyo, kayo ang magbigay ng franchise, hindi naman sila-sila ay nagpapatupad lang ng batas, ganoon ang thinking nila.

Q: Do you think hindi na kailangan ipatawag ng Senate ang NTC to explain bakit yung nangako sila nung March, nung earlier sa public hearing sa Senate, pero bakit hindi nila nagawa?

SP Sotto: Well, I doubt it because I know the answer. Isasagot sa amin, expired eh, expired yung franchise, yun ang isasagot. Sabihin noon, pagka hindi sila kumilos, sila ang babalikan ng neglect of duty. Ganoon ang sasabihin noon, yun ang sagot noon sigurado, dahil yun ang sinasabi na naririnig ko sa media.

Q: Ano ang masasabi mo doon sa impact nung nag-off air, sabi nung isang professor na ang lakas ng impact that many Filipinos are now getting involved sa issue?

SP Sotto: Wala akong masasabi kasi 24 Oras ang pinapanood ko. Hindi ko alam, hindi ko nakita, nabalitaan ko lang nung gabi na wala na raw yung ano, na off-the-air daw.

Q: May intention po ba ang Senate to pass any economic stimulus bill in the next few weeks?

SP Sotto: Yes, we will try the CITIRA, we will really try the CITIRA, pero perhaps this is the latest news, baka ito mas magandang pagusapan kesa doon sa pagusapan natin yung problema ng House doon sa franchise ng ABS. Mas maganda pagusapan natin yung mamaya, during the session, there will be a resolution that the Senate will constitute itself into a Committee of the Whole and we are going to set a schedule, the Senate is giving me the authority to convene, making me the chair of the committee of the whole, and we are going to invite the economic managers and the IATF. Most probably I will schedule it on Monday for a hearing and then on Tuesday we will invite perhaps the Department of Health, the Department of Agriculture, on Wednesday most probably the DOTR, everything involved in the address being done by the Executive Department on the pandemic that's happening worldwide. We would like to be briefed, so baka Monday mag umpisa and that is, we will be approving the resolution later.

Q: When do you think will you wrap up the proceedings of the committee of the whole?

SP Sotto: Sana by Wednesday, hopefully by Wednesday. So if we can schedule a(unclear) by Monday, the economic managers and IATF, then we can talk to the rest of the others on Tuesday, and by Wednesday, hopefully, we can wrap up and come up with a very good perspective of how it is going, how it is coming along.

Q: So may bagong committee report doon sa gagawin ninyong pag convene ng committee of the whole?

SP Sotto: For sure. Ako naman ang gagawin ko, alam mo naman beterano tayo sa committee work nung araw, so ang gagawin ko doon, habang naghehearing na ng Monday, nagmemeeting na ng Monday, patatapos ko na kaagad sa gabi yung output noon and input, and on Tuesday, ganoon din, so hopefully by Wednesday, kaunti na lang, by Wednesday evening, or by Thursday, I will be able to come up with a committee report.

Q: Paano po ang magiging sistema sa Monday to Wednesday, telecon din po?

SP Sotto: Hindi, hybrid din yan malamang. Kung sino ang pwedeng sumamang Executive Department dito sa session hall or sa Senate mismo, aalamin namin kung sino ang hindi, sa teleconference. By the way, habang nandiyan si Nimfa, just to get the record straight, tinatanong kasi ni Cecille ang reaction ko sa pagkaka off-the-air, sabi ko hindi ko alam, paano ako magrereact, 24 Oras ang pinapanood ko. Pero sa umaga, si Ted Failon ang pinapanood ko, DZMM. Wala akong napanood kaninang umaga. Dapat pala yun ang tinanong mo sa akin Cecille, ano ang reaksiyon ko pagbukas ko kaninang umaga, wala si Ted Failon? Nalungkot ako, wala si Ted Failon. Golf buddy ko yun. At saka malamang maging kandidato ko yun sa 2022.

Q: Gusto ninyong marinig yung mga Cabinet members dahil hindi kayo kuntento sa President's report every Monday?

SP Sotto: Hindi sa hindi kuntento, hindi naman, kaya lang maraming tanong. Napakaraming tanong na hindi namin maitatanong through the reports. Maraming tanong, Ang aming Senate President Pro-Tempore, siya nga ang naglabas ng idea na ito and then of course we have our oversight chair, Senator Pia Cayetano. Report lang din ang nagagawa niya pero kung may mga tanong kami at kung may gusto kaming makita kung saan napupunta, especially the way the economy is going, kailangan talaga mas mabuti kung magkaroon tayo ng hearing, public hearing, as a matter of fact.

Q: Magiging hybrid yung committee of the whole?

SP Sotto: Malamang hybrid kasi una sa lahat, hindi naman makaka-attend lahat yung mga Senador dito and then we are not sure whether all the economic managers will be here or all the members of the IATF will be here, so mas mabuti na yung hybrid. Para siguradong meron dito, meron din sa ano. Yung ginagamit naman namin is very reliable, it can accommodate if I am not mistaken, kaya ng isang libo, 50 to 1,000, or 500 ba so kung tutuusin, easily kaya kayong 36 doon sa internet.

Q: May word na po ba from Malacanang kung kailangan ninyong gumawa ng Bayanihan 2? SP Sotto: Wala pa, no word. In fact, malalaman natin yan, Monday.

Q: Based sa sasabihin ng Cabinet?

SP Sotto: Oo, based (unclear) siguro at saka kung may sasabihin sila about it kasi really, if you read the entirety of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, we gave all the powers necessary to the Executive Department, more particularly to the President. Nandoon lahat. Nandoon lahat ang kakailanganin, even yung mga realignment, mga ganoon-ganoon, nandoon lahat. Hindi kailangan ng additional, pati sa funding, pwede nilang galawin yung dapat galawin.

Q: Nasunod po ba yung gusto ni Senator Recto na (unclear) topic, yung discussion doon sa inyong hearing on Monday?

SP Sotto: Yes. Ganoon ang mangyayari. Yes. They will authorize me to schedule. Now once the resolution is approved later, I am told that they will authorize the Senate President as chair of the committee of the whole to schedule who will be here on Monday, and who will be on Tuesday, and Wednesday, ganoon.

Q: Uunahin ninyo health issue?

SP Sotto: Baka Tuesday yun. Sa akin ganoon, off-hand, pag tinanong mo na ako ngayon, pag tinanong nila ako mamaya, ipopropose ko kaagad, economic managers at saka IATF muna sa Monday and then most probably, (unclear) the following day hindi ko lang masabi, depende sa report.

Q: Nakita ko yung tweet ninyo kahapon, yung sabi ninyo bring it to the Senate, we will pass it. Can we put that on record na once dumating sa Senado yung prangkisa ng ABS CBN sigurado pong mapapasa?

SP Sotto: Yes, I am very optimistic. Once the franchise bill of ABS CBN reaches the Senate, we will approve it.

Q: Walang magiging contentious issue an ano po yung time frame ninyo kung sakaling umakyat, gaano ninyo kabilis kayang ipasa?

SP Sotto: That will be left in the hands of the chair of the Committee on Public Services kung tatawag pa ng isa, dalawang hearing, yun ang yun pero I am very optimistic nga as I said that most if not all of the members of the Senate are all in favor.

Q: Sabi ninyo years ago na yung franchise, bakit hindi pa inapprove, nagkulang ba ang House dito?

SP Sotto: I don't know. I don't know the reasons why it was not approved in 2014 and we filed again in the 16th Congress, we filed in the 17th Congress, and now it's in the 18th Congress, I don't know. Mahirap manghula.

Q: Do you share the sentiments ng mga kasama ninyo na (unclear) umabot sa pagpapasara yung nangyari sa ABS CBN?

SP Sotto: What is their sentiment?

Q: Dismayado si Senator Drilon, kinondena pa niya kahapon, do you share his sentiments na maling-mali na napasara yung ABS CBN?

SP Sotto: I will not go as far as saying maling-mali because as far as the NTC is concerned, they are doing their job. What I can say is that it is sad, and I am saddened, that their franchise was not approved in time. That's about it. I am not in a position to say na maling-mali, hindi ba because as far as the NTC is concerned, they were doing their job.

Q: Sabi ninyo nga you are saddened and NTC is not the one to be blamed on this, so ano yung nakikita ninyo? Kasi being a veteran legislator, ano yung kulang or naging sobra, how should we read it?

SP Sotto: I will be second-guessing. The problem is I will be second-guessing the committee on franchises of the House and I'd rather not do that. I don't know the reasons why they were not heard and why it was not taken up and approved in time. I really don't know. The fact is it was not called.

Q: Do you agree to the observation na the closing itself has chilling effects to the journalism profession?

SP Sotto: Again it depends on your perspective. Yes, and not exactly no, ano kasi most of the programs of ABS CBN is not news, hindi ba? Tatlong beses lang ang news. In the morning, TV Patrol, and then what's that, yung sa gabi? Bandila, and then the rest, about 70 percent of the programming is entertainment. Now if you remove the news programs of ABS CBN, you remove the news programs of GMA, you remove the news programs of TV5, then you can definitely say it is a strike at the freedom of the press or sa journalism na katulad ng sinabi mo. Kaya nung, if you will recall, nung meron silang sinasabi na, merong nagbanggit ng paano ngayon, where can we get our reliable sources of news, parang ang tingin ko noon, baka tumaas ang kilay nung nila Mike Enriquez. Bakit, hindi ba reliable source ng news sila? Di ba? Sana huwag ganoon. Let's talk about the franchise. Let's not bring it to a different level na iba na ang dating, hindi ganoon dapat yan. Let's simplify the issue. The issue is, the House of Representatives have not approved the franchise. Inabot ng expiration. They were not cut off. They were not stopped, kailangan isipin natin yun, hindi pinutol. Nag-expire, that's a different story. Pag pinutol then tama lahat yung sinasabi na it's a strike (unclear) freedom of the press, freedom of journalism, or ganoon, or kung ano man yung sinasabi nilang ganoon. Pero it expired eh, (unclear), that's the issue. Now, airtime is not the property of ABS or GMA or channel 5. It's not your property, it's the property f the Filipino people. Hindi nila pag-aari yun, pag-aari ng taong-bayan yun. You need a license to use it, ganoon ang usapan.

Q: The franchise expired, pero given the reality na for a number of Congresses, the network has also filed, repeatedly filed its franchise bill.

SP Sotto: Kaya nga eh. Now if NTC did their job, bakit sila ang sasabihin nating mali? Kung ginawa nilang tama yung�kaya nga hindi ko sinabi, wala akong kinakampihan ha? Kaya lang ayokong sabihin na mali yung ginawa ng NTC. Yes, it is within their power to give an authority, di ba? Pwede, iauthorize muna nila na nag extend, pero I overheard a dean of law this morning, ang explanation nga niya, nag-expire eh and the only institution that can give you the authority is Congress, not the NTC, tama yung sinasabi niya na yun, kaya they were caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Q: So ang nagkaroon ng shortcoming talaga is the Lower House whether we admit it or not?

SP Sotto: Dapat talaga, oo, whether you like it or not, that's how it is and if I were the executives of ABS CBN, I would really try to find out what's wrong with our system, what's wrong with our relationship with the House of Representatives? Why are we not being approved or even heard? From 2014, ang tagal na nito di ba? Sixteenth Congress, 17th Congress, 18th Congress, so let us not directly say that kasi ayaw ni Presidente, kaya ayaw nilang kumilos, parang I cannot believe that because 2014, hindi si President Duterte ang presidente.

Q: Given the situation, are you still hopeful that the network can still be reopened kung halimbawa very quiet sa House and then we're just waiting for this and then sabi ng Malacanang, si Presidente naman ay hindi makikialam?

SP Sotto: Pag sinabi ng Presidente na hindi siya makikialam, hindi makikialam yun. The situation right now as far as I know is that ABS CBN must convince the NTC within 10 days to retain and to hold on to their frequency. I think that is the immediate need ABS CBN has to do.

Q: Senator Zubiri said that he will talk to his colleagues to discuss the issue of ABS CBN this afternoon do you think there is something to be discussed? Or the Senate should come out with a position about this matter?

SP Sotto: I will listen to what Senator Zubiri is saying. As of the moment I don't know of any (unclear) clear-cut issue on the matter except their franchise expired and they were told by NTC that they have to cease operation because their franchise expired. That' about it so I don't know yet, siguro pag nakausap ko si Migz malalaman ko kung ano ang nasa isip nila.

Q: Wala kayong nakikita na parang violation doon sa equal protection clause sa ating Constitution considering na sa iba pinayagan na magpatuloy mag operate kahit na expired na yung franchise, parang na-single out ang ABS CBN?

SP Sotto: If you recall, a few month ago when this was being mentioned, I already said that NTC may extend or give them authority to operate while their franchise is being taken up by Congress, di ba because it has happened before. Nasa prerogative ngayon ng NTC kasi nga ngayon. It's an off-shoot of the expiration. So naiwan sa kamay ng NTC ngayon yun kung bibigyan or hindi di ba? Eh they elected not to give contrary to what the other members of the Executive Department are saying, particularly DOJ.