Cayetano pushes for Pateros City

House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano is pushing for the cityhood of municipality of Pateros.

For a municipality to be converted into a component city, it must first meet the requirement of an annual income of P100 million and a total population of 150,000.

As of the latest data in 2016, Pateros has earned an annual total revenue of 189,568,949.27.

Pateros population as of the 2015 Official Census of Populations and Households is 63,840 and is projected to rise to 65,000 by the year 2020 with a recorded 3.6 percent growth rate.

The ABS-CBN franchise is still tilted to the chamber

There are six bills on the franchise renewal of broadcast giant ABS-CBN that are being served at the lower house and among the billmakers are Deputy Speaker Vilma Santos-Recto of Batangas and Rose Marie Arenas of Pangasinan.

Under Republic Act No. 3846, owners of television and radio stations in the country are required to take a franchise to Congress before they can legally operate. Such franchises need to be renewed after 25 years being the life of a franchise.

Congressman Franz Alvarez of Palawan is chairman of the House committee on franchises and has taken no action to discuss the six bills for ABS-CBN franchise renewal.

The House committee on franchises has nothing to do with the dispute between ABS-CBN and President Rodrigo Duterte in which the president complained about the failure of the P3 million TV station paid by his campaign team in 2016 for political ads not is being broadcast by ABS-CBN.

Duterte campaign ads are a response to Senator Antonio Trillanes' accusations that ABS-CBN is echoing but not responding to Team Duterte despite paying for air time not returned by the TV station.

President Duterte has repeatedly criticized ABS-CBN in his speeches and has seen congressional hearings "marching orders" not to discuss pending bills regarding the renewal of the ABS-CBN franchise.

On March 30, 2020 the ABS-CBN franchise expires and this means that without the bill being passed the franchise chamber will not be able to operate the TV station beyond that date.

And once the ABS-CBN franchise bill passes through the chamber, the president can approved.

It would only matter if ABS-CBN gets a two-thirds vote in the chamber and Senate to override the presidential approval and TV station's franchise bill becomes law. But it is impossible to override the presidential approval because a majority of congressmen and senators support President Duterte and therefore his allies sit as Speaker and Senate President.

The Lopez family is in big trouble because they will lose a lot of money when ABS-CBN fails to operate.

Many employees and talent TV stations will also lose their jobs, including celebrities who regularly watch ABS-CBN such as Coco Martin, Vice Ganda and Anne Curtis.

And when that happens, it will only be in the movies of Star Cinema that the Filipino masses will be entertained while GMA 7 artists will be seen on public television.

House eyes passage of laws creating 3 new gov't departments

The House of Representatives aims to pass proposed laws creating 3 new agencies for overseas workers, disaster response and water distribution before the year ends, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said Wednesday.

"We want the 3 departments... before the end of the year," he told radio DZMM.

"As we know, kahit ma-create iyan before the end of the year, wala pa naman sa budget iyan tapos kukuha pa ng empleyado, lipatan ng opisina. Even assuming that we can do it by the end of the year, baka middle of next year pa [maging operational]," he added.

(Even if these are created before the end of the year, those departments would have no budget yet and will still get employees, offices. Even assuming that we can do it by the end of the year, it may be take until the middle of next year for the new agencies to be operational.)

Lawmakers are drafting a substitute bill that will replace several versions of the proposed Department of Disaster Resilience, which disagree on whether it should take over relief aid distribution from the social welfare department and how to incorporate police in disaster response, said Cayetano.

On the other hand, all the bills agree that there should only be one Cabinet Secretary held accountable for mitigating disaster, providing first response and rehabilitating destroyed structures, he said.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/11/06/19/house-eyes-passage-of-laws-creating-3-new-govt-departments

Salceda co-authors ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal bill

Broadcast giant ABS-CBN got a much needed boost for their congressional franchise renewal bill as House Committee on Ways and Means chair Joey Salceda moved that he be made additional co-author of the proposed legislation.

Salceda on Tuesday sent a communication to House secretary-general Joel Montales, manifesting that he wants to be one of the co-authors of House Bill No. 676—the first measure filed under the 18th Congress that seeks to grant a fresh 25-year congressional franchise to the Kapamilya Network.

Salceda’s move came with less than five months remaining in the current congressional franchise of ABS-CBN under Republic Act No. 7966 that will expire on March 2020.

Principally authored by Nueva Ecija Rep. Micaela Violago, HB 676 is a refiled version of House Bill No. 8163 which the 17th Congress both under the Alvarez and Arroyo Speakerships failed to tackle during the said period.

About five proposed legislations were recently filed under the 18th Congress which seek to grant ABS-CBN a fresh 25-year franchise.

On Monday, House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano admitted that he has a personal grudge over broadcast giant ABS-CBN for supposedly meddling in the political arena during the height of the 2016 presidential polls.

“I feel that there’s certain instances in history and in the 2016 election na naki-alam unjustly some sectors or some leaders of ABS-CBN, so how do you sort it out?” said Cayetano in an interview with the ABS-CBN News Channel.

“People like me, ako may angal din ako. I’ll tell you this is my personal ha? On one hand I feel that we have to protect the freedom of press and freedom of expression,” he added.

Cayetano last week admitted that the congressional franchise renewal application of the Kapamilya Network remains uncertain although he gave an assurance that the Lower House under his helm will exercise fairness in tackling the matter amidst earlier opposition from no less than President Rodrigo Duterte.

“We will be fair. It’s our duty to be fair, when we will take it up I’ve already stated in public at saka sa mga chairman, tapusin muna ang mga priority bills para naka-focus tayo diyan,” said Cayetano.

Duterte on many occasions has threatened ABS-CBN that he will approve or veto its franchise renewal if ever it will hurdle congressional approval, claiming that he got swindled by the Kapamilya network’s top honchos for not airing his political ad during the final stretch of the 2016 presidential polls.

https://politics.com.ph/salceda-co-authors-abs-cbns-franchise-renewal-bill/

Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano says he has "personal objections" to ABS-CBN franchise renewal

May "personal objection" si House Speaker at Taguig City-Pateros Representative Alan Peter Cayetano sa franchise renewal ng ABS-CBN.

Ngunit nilinaw niyang hindi ito nangangahulugang hindi na sila magiging patas sa pagtalakay nila sa mga nakabinbing panukalang batas sa Kongreso ukol sa pagbibigay ng panibagong prangkisa sa broadcast giant.

Sa panayam ni Karen Davila sa mambabatas sa programang Headstart sa ANC, ang cable channel ng ABS-CBN, kahapon, November 4, inamin ni Cayetano na mayroon din siyang pag-aalinlangan tungkol sa franchise renewal ng network.

Pahayag niya, “People like me, I also have some objections.

"I’ll tell you, this is my personal [opinion], okay?

"On one hand, I feel that we have to protect the freedom of [the] press and freedom of expression.

“On the other hand, I feel that certain instances in history and in the 2016 election na nakialam unjustly some sectors or some leaders of ABS.

“So, how do you sort it out?"

Sa Marso 30, 2020 nakatakdang mag-expire ang 25-year franchise to broadcast ng Kapamilya Network na iginawad noong Marso 30, 1995 via Republic Act 7966.

PUBLIC DEBATE ON PROPOSED BILLS

Hindi raw priority ng Kongreso, na kakabalik lang sa session, ang tungkol dito dahil mas maraming priority bills ang kailangan nilang unahin.

Pero tatalakayin daw ito ng Committee on Legislative Franchises bago magtapos ang taon.

Saad ni Cayetano, "Right now, we can debate that, and of course you will stand up for the network.

“But I'd rather have it in a hearing, diretsuhan, face to face, and talk about it.

"I'll just assure the public, whether they are for or against ABS-CBN, that we will do it with due process and we will find a conclusion that is acceptable to everyone but will be good for the country.

“Remember, may Senate at Presidente pa.”

Sa kasalukuyan, may anim na proposed bills tungkol sa franchise renewal ng network sa Lower House ang nakabinbin pa rin sa komite at hindi pa naikakalendaryo.

May isang panukalang batas din sa Senado ukol dito.

Tungkol naman sa warning ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte na haharangin niya ang panibagong prangkisa ng ABS-CBN, sabi ni Speaker Cayetano, “So, that’s between ABS-CBN and the President because I’m sure may legitimate criticism ang Pangulo.”

Ikinagalit nang husto ni Pangulong Duterte ang hindi pag-ere ng ABS-CBN sa kanyang political ad noong 2016 Presidential Elections kahit bayad na ito.

https://www.pep.ph/news/local/147333/alan-peter-cayetano-personal-objections-abs-cbn-franchise-renewal-a718-20191105