ABS-CBN president and CEO Carlo Katigbak on Monday vowed to give government officials to give their side on any issue related to the broadcasting company.
Katigbak gave his words during the House of Representative’s continued joint panel hearings on the ABS-CBN franchise renewal.
“As of now, I would like to make a public commitment that any public official will be given airtime on ABS-CBN to express their side on any issue that is being raised against them,” he said.
“That is a commitment by the owners, by the management, and we are instructing our organization today to take note of this instruction,” Carlo Katigbak added.
The ABS-CBN chief made the response after Cavite Representative Abraham Tolentino accused the network of being unjust in its coverage of the senatorial candidacy of his brother, Senator Francis Tolentino.
The lawmaker said it was hard to have their side aired on the broadcasting company in the issues they are facing.
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House Minority Leader Benny Abante also raised issues of morality on some of ABS-CBN’s shows.
As a response, ABS-CBN COO for Broadcast Cory Vidanes said that ABS-CBN would continue upholding Filipino values in its shows. She also committed to making changes in its programming if it is granted another franchise.
“Rest assured po na iisa po ang ating layunin na mapangalagaan ang moral at spiritual values ng pamilyang Pilipino. We tell po stories that teach life lessons and our stories po embody Filipino values, like hardwork, honesty, respect, resilience, and most of all love for family, country, and God, dahil ang sentro ng aming mga kwento ay ang pamilyang Pilipino,” she said.
“We will continue to be responsible content producers that make a positive influence in the lives of the Filipino. Maganda po ang hangarin namin. We want to entertain, inspire, and give hope to the Filipino audience,” she added.
It’s been two months after National Telecommunications Commission(NTC) ordered ABS-CBN to ceased its operations after its franchise expired on May 4, 2020.
On June 29, NTC then ordered the network to stop its airing on TV Plus, Channel 43, and Sky Direct, which affected millions of viewers.