Mindanao lawmakers support passage of Cordillera autonomy bill

QUEZON CITY, August 20 (PIA) -- Representatives from Mindanao assured to support the passage of the Cordillera Autonomy bill in Congress.

The Local Government Committee of the House of Representatives, composed mostly of lawmakers from Mindanao, has vowed support of the passage of House Bill 5343 or the act establishing the Autonomous Region in the Cordillera.

Sub Committee Chairperson Zamboanga Sibugay 1st District Rep. Wilter Palma II said with the support of the Cordillera representatives to the recently passed Bangsamoro Organic law, it is now their turn to support the bid of the Cordillerans for their own autonomous region.

 “This representation also supports the creation of the Cordillera Autonomous Region. Kami naman pong mga taga Mindanao ang susuporta sa inyo,” Palma said. 

 Bukidnon 3rd District Rep. Manuel Zubiri likewise assured support to the “long overdue clamour of the Cordillerans.”

“Definitely, I am for this (autonomy in the Cordillera). It is long overdue, I think it should have started a long time ago,” Zubiri said as he called on his fellow lawmakers from Mindanao to support their Cordillera brothers and sisters in their quest for autonomy.

Lanao Del Norte 1st District Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo and Zamboanga Del Sur 2nd District Rep. Aurora Cerilles also vowed support for the passing of the autonomy bill of the Cordillera as they proposed the creation of a Technical Working Group which would look into the issues on hand including the amendments of the HB 5343 and the conduct of the public hearings which were also done for the Bangsamoro Organic law.

 “We support the Cordillera Autonomous Region, in the spirit of brotherhood, especially coming from the minority and the marginalized sector,” Dimaporo said.

The TWG will be composed of the Cordillera representatives who will be working double time to conduct meetings and public hearings at the different Cordillera provinces with the secretariat of the House of Representatives.

In his message during the hearing, Regional Development Council Chairperson,  Baguio City Mayor Mauricio Domogan thanked the Congress for passing the Bangsamoro Organic Law and appealed for the passage of the Cordillera autonomy bill.

He presented the resolutions of support for the establishment of the autonomous region in the Cordillera coming from the different local government units, civil society organizations and other stakeholders in the region. He also submitted the amendments of the House bill which will be used by the TWG.

Based on the timeline, the TWG should complete the public hearings and inputs of amendments until September for the bill to be passed and be ready for plebiscite.

Domogan led the delegates from the different provinces of the Cordillera to participate and show support during the committee hearing of the Autonomy bill.

Cordillera lawmakers present during the committee hearing were Apayao Rep. Eleanor Begtang, Baguio City Rep. Mark Go, Benguet Rep. Ronald Cosalan, Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat and Kalinga Rep and Mountain Province Caretaker Allen Jesse Mangaoang. (JDP/RMC-PIA CAR)

http://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1011732

Network Wars? ABS-CBN, GMA Face Bigger Threat of Earnings Meltdown Amid Digital Shift

Both broadcasters saw net income decline in the first half of 2018

The country’s two largest television networks, ABS-CBN Corp. and GMA Network Inc. posted double-digit drops in their net income in the first half of the 2018 as advertisers funnel their money elsewhere due to the seemingly growing appetite of Filipinos for alternative forms of entertainment.

ABS-CBN Corp. suffered a greater decline between the two as it posted a 41-percent drop in net income from Php1.3 billion in the first half of 2017 to Php741 million in the same period this year. As for GMA Network, its net income only slid by 21 percent to Php1.2 billion from Php1.6 billion.

 “This year saw a notable contraction in television placements from advertisers, which was felt across the broadcasting industry,” GMA Network said in its second quarter financial report. Majority of both networks’ revenues come from ads.

GMA Network’s revenues from television and radio airtime dropped by seven percent in the first half of the year at Php6.4 billion while ABS-CBN Corp.’s advertising earnings decreased by three percent to Php9.6 billion. The latter’s slowing performance was also further aggravated by the lower revenues recorded from the movies it has released under its film production arm, ABS-CBN Films.

GMA Network ended the first half of the year with a six-percent decline in total revenues at Php7.2 billion while ABS-CBN saw its revenues slightly decline from Php19.34 billion to Php18.9 billion.

Still, the revenue growth slowdown comes as ABS-CBN Corp. aims to go fully online “to address the rapid digital preference move of the ‘millennials’.”  The company has been launching various online platforms in recent years and its investments are now starting to bear fruit. The firm’s “digital and interactive media” operations posted a 50-percent increase in revenues for the first half of 2018 at Php390 million.

As for GMA, its chairman and CEO Felipe Gozon said the company remains optimistic that it will perform better for the rest of the year. After all, the network may be expecting early political advertisement placements in its shows, as the May 2019 senatorial election looms closer.

“In spite of challenging market conditions, GMA Network was still able to breach the one billion-peso mark in terms of net income for the first half of 2018,” Gozon said. ”We look forward to seeing the rest of the year with better results for our company.”

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Elyssa Christine Lopez is a staff writer of Entrepreneur PH. Follow her on Twitter @elyssalopz