(Eagle News)–The franchise of ABS-CBN will expire in May, not March, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Monday, Feb. 24.
According to Guevarra, this was because based on records, Republic Act No. 7966, the law that granted the company the license to operate for 25 years, was published on April 19, 1995.
He said the law, although enacted on March 30, 1995, provides itself that it would become effective 15 days after the date of its publication.
“For that reason, the franchise will expire on May 4, 2020,” Guevarra said.
The Senate panel on public services kicked off its hearings on ABS-CBN’s franchise on Monday, Feb. 24.
This was despite opposition from the House of Representatives, which said bills, including those on the network’s renewal, should originate from them, according to the Constitution.
At least two senators refuted the House’s claims, saying it has long been a tradition for the Senate to conduct hearings on bills even before the House submits its committee report.
Senator Panfilo Lacson for his part said that although the House may have a point, the hearings were supposedly by virtue of a resolution seeking an inquiry into ABS-CBN’S compliance to the terms of its franchise, and not by virtue of franchise bills.
