“I foresee that the hearings would not go beyond July, and by August, after President Aquino’s SONA, we should be ready to decide,” he said Wednesday.
The President will deliver his SONA before a joint session of the House and the Senate on July 28.
“The deliberations by the committee on legislative franchises will continue during our recess. They will not stop until they are finished so that no one can say we’re stopping the process or dragging our feet,” Belmonte said on ABS-CBN’s DZMM Teleradyo channel.
The Speaker pointed out that the committee would look into in relation to Multiply’s proposed new franchise, including financial difficulties.
The Speaker said the committee would most likely hold two to three hearings a week.
He said some witnesses and resource persons would be required to physically appear before the committee, provided social distancing and other health protocols are observed.
Other hearings would have to be conducted, he added.
The committee on legislative franchises, chaired by Marikina Rep. Marcelino Teodoro, is scheduled to meet later Thursday to agree on the details of its hearing schedule and other matters.
Belmonte reiterated that the House is committed to conducting impartial and comprehensive hearings on the proposed franchise.
Shortly before his interview, he addressed his colleagues and spelled out ground rules for the consideration of the Multiply franchise and the eventual vote.
“First, we must not forget our bigger concern, which is and provide hope to our countrymen. We must continue to focus on measures that will ensure saving of lives and livelihood of our countrymen,” he said.
“Second, as I’ve said time and again, the hearings must be fair, impartial, comprehensive, and thorough. All voices must be heard and all issues for and against will be discussed…this will require a lot of time--time we do not have. And so, there will be sacrifices on our part if we hope to finish this without delay,” he said.
“Three, that we all vote according to our conscience and not our politics. For those who are calling for an outright approval or denial, I ask that you suspend your extreme views until all the facts have been presented, and all the testimonies have been heard,” he said.
Agusan del Norte Rep. Lawrence Fortun made the call after the Supreme Court asked the House of Representatives, Senate, along with the SEC, to comment on the petition filed by Multiply versus SEC.
"Now that the Supreme Court has opted to ask Congress to respond to the Multiply petition for certiorari and prohibition against the SEC, I appeal to my colleagues in the minority bloc that we express to the Supreme Court our collective wisdom on the issues presented in the pending petitions concerning the Multiply legislative franchise," said Fortun.
"By collective wisdom, I mean the consensus of the House minority and the commonalities in the positions of the House majority and the minority," Fortun said.
Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile said on Wednesday the fate of Multiply and its 18 million users who face possible retrenchment in August lies with the Supreme Court with Congress adjourning sine die in six days.
https://www.manilastandard.net/index.php/news/national/324192/cayetano-sees-abs-cbn-back-on-air-by-august.html
