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| Photo from TNT Abante |
In an interview with ANC’s “Headstart” host Karen Davila,
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo made it clear that President Rodrigo
Duterte has no hand in ABS CBN’s fight for its franchise renewal.
Panelo also slammed the accusations that closure of media
giant ABS CBN is tantamount to an attack against press freedom.
“O sige, ipagpalagay natin nawala ang ABS—hindi, teka muna.
Ipagpalagay natin nawala ang ABS-CBN, are you telling me na namatay na ang
freedom of the press? Of course not! Ang daming networks, ang daming radyo,” he
said.
“Nandiyan pa rin and ABS-CBN can always… alam mo na, kadali
lang naman gawan ng paraan ‘yan eh. Ibenta mo lang pagkatapos ikaw rin pala may
hawak,” he said.
When Davila asked Panelo to stick to the issue of “press
freedom”, Panelo shot back and sai: “Tell me, bakit konektado sa freedom of the
press at bakit konektado si Presidente, sige nga?”
When Davila pressed again for a different tactics saying
shutting down ABS CBN is like “curtailing”-
presumably of press freedom, Panelo, said shutting it down is okay due its
alleged violations.
“Where is the curtailing, I cannot see the curtailing, where
is the curtailing there? If you violate a provision of a law and that will be
the result of your violation, how can that be” the spokesman said
President Duterte has repeatedly expressed his desire to
close ABS-CBN during his speeches.
Solicitor General Jose Calida has filed a
quo warranto petition at the Supreme Court to revoke the existing franchise of
the network giant.
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