A RESOLUTION asking House committees to investigate and file necessary criminal charges against the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and the Office of the Solicitor General was filed by a lawmaker on Friday, May 8.
In his yet unnumbered resolution, Anakalusugan Party-List Representative Mike Defensor stressed that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has recognized the power of Congress to authorize the NTC to grant a provisional authority.
The resolution also said that the actions of the NTC commissioners and its officials violated Republic Act No. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Under this law, “persuading, inducing, or influencing other public officers to perform an act constituting a violation of rules and regulations duly promulgated by the competent authority” are considered to be unlawful.
Defensor blamed the former members of Congress who failed to act on bills seeking to renew the ABS-CBN franchise since 2014.
"I think it is only fair that we ask our colleagues who were here then and who are the most vocal now—what did you do then? If you truly believe that this is an issue of press freedom, then why didn’t you speak up the way that you are doing now?" he said in a statement.
"Unfortunately, those who cry foul the hardest are those who were already members of Congress when ABS-CBN first applied for their renewal. Unfair naman sa aming mga 160 members na bago pa lang sa kongreso at walang kinalaman sa mahigit na anim na taon na naka-pending ang application ng ABS-CBN," he added.
Defensor served as congressman from 1995 to 2001. (Jove T. Moya/SunStar Philippines)