Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 8) — ABS-CBN’s return to air now lies with the Supreme Court.
READ: ABS-CBN asks Supreme Court to stop shutdown order
The high court on Friday confirmed receipt of ABS-CBN’s petition that seeks to declare “null and void” the cease and desist order issued by the National Telecommunications Commission. The embattled network also pleaded for a temporary restraining order and/or writ of preliminary injunction “to prevent grave and irreparable injury” to the network and its employees, estimated to be around 11,000.
CNN Philippines’ Anjo Alimario contributed to this report.
“The Petition will be raffled to a Member-in-Charge on Monday, 11 May 2020, who will then make a recommendation for the consideration of the Court En Banc,” the Supreme Court’s Public Information Office said in a statement.
The 15-member court dominated by appointees of President Rodrigo Duterte holds en banc sessions online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
ABS-CBN’s shutdown hogged international headlines as thousands of media workers lost their jobs while the world is battling COVID-19, which has infected more than 3.8 million people globally. It is also heavily criticized as an attack on press freedom, since Duterte had publicly threatened ABS-CBN over its refusal to carry his campaign commercials in 2016.
Duterte earlier accepted an apology from ABS-CBN. His spokesperson, Harry Roque said Duterte is “completely neutral” on ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal, and the lawmakers should decide on it without worrying about what the President would feel.
Numerous bills are pending at the House of Representatives seeking to grant ABS-CBN a fresh 25-year franchise, but the issue is still not scheduled for hearing next week.
Instead, House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano blamed the National Telecommunications Commission for not giving the media giant provisional authority as earlier promised. Both the House and Senate asked NTC to do so pending the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise.
