Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 17) – An executive of ABS-CBN asserted that the network was not returned by the Aquino government to the Lopez family in 1986, but the employees took it back by themselves.
ABS-CBN vice chairperson Augusto “Jake” Almeda-Lopez said on Wednesday that both the administration of former presidents Ferdinand Marcos and Corazon Aquino took control of the network from 1972 to 1986.
“For 14 years, pinalakad ng mga Marcos…kinuha sa amin ng mga Marcos ang ABS-CBN,” Almeda-Lopez said during the continuation of the hearing on the network’s franchise issue. “Hindi isinauli sa amin, kinuha namin, binalik namin sa sarili namin.”
[Translation: For 14 years, the Marcoses ran it…they took ABS-CBN from us. They never returned it to us, we took it back for ourselves.]
After the Marcos government ordered the shutdown of the network during martial law, the network was not able to immediately use again its broadcast equipment and facilities as it allowed the Aquino administration to use them while the country was still rebuilding at the time.
Almeda-Lopez noted that ABS-CBN entered into an arbitration agreement with the Aquino government after the latter asked the Lopez family to show proof of ownership of the network.
“Pumayag kami na gamitin ng forces ni Cory Aquino at ni (Juan) Ponce Enrile na gamitin ang ABS-CBN during the crisis period,” said Almeda-Lopez.
[Translation: We allowed the forces of Cory Aquino and of Ponce Enrile to use ABS-CBN during the crisis period.]
“Hindi po isinauli sa amin ng Cory government ang istasyon,” he said. “Kami ang nagpahiram sa Cory government.”
[Translation: The Cory government did not return the station to us. We just lend them the network.]
Meanwhile, Enrile denied that the television network was sequestered during Martial Law.
“The facilities of the entire ABS-CBN complex was placed under the control of the government,” Enrile said. “The title of all these facilities were never transferred to the government, they remained with the owners.”
“Hindi po tama yung sinabi ni Jake Almeda Lopez na inagaw ni Presidente Marcos yung ABS-CBN,” said the former senator, who served as Marcos’ defense minister for many years.
[Translation: What Jake Almeda-Lopez said about the President Marcos taking over the ABS-CBN is not right.]
READ: Lopez family never lost ownership of ABS-CBN, says lawyer
