DISMAYADO ang mga senador sa inilabas na cease and desist order ng National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) laban sa ABS-CBN.

Ayon kina Senador Sonny Angara, Joel Villanueva at Migz Zubiri, mali ang timing ng kautusan ng NTC.

Sinabi ni Angara na sa panahon ng COVID-19 pandemic, kailangan ng taumbayan ng mas maraming mapagkukunan ng reliable information kaya’t hindi makatwirang isara ang kumpanya.

“People need to be informed by reliable sources this is a time when we need reliable info and we decide to shutdown one of the sources of information,” saad ni Angara.

“The current resolution of NTC is disappointing. To issue this in times of COVID-19 when people need jobs to survive the pandemic is just heartless considering congressional hearings have shown that the station has not violated any law to justify none extension of franchise,” pahayag ni Villanueva.

“Irregular and improper in this time of national pandemic that we would cut off a major television station that provides info dissemination as well as info gathering. I’m really saddened by the move of NTC,” saad naman ni Zubiri kasabay ng payo sa kumpanya na umapela sa Korte Suprema.

Nagpahayag naman ng pagkabahala si Senador Grace Poe sa mga empleyado ng kumpanya.

“ABS-CBN and other networks continue to pay their talents even if they’re not working. With this development and with no security of their revenue stream in the coming months, I’m afraid many will lose that benefit of having some sort of support while there’s no work,” saad ni Poe.

“I think this is another angle that needs to be looked at by the NTC. Ngayon pa sila magpapasara kung kailan ang daming walang trabaho. At least ito naaalagaan at di dapat sa gobyerno umasa,” diin pa nito.

Iginiit naman ng mga minority senator na ang kautusan ng NTC ay taliwas sa mga inaprubahang resolusyon ng dalawang Kapulungan na naghikayat sa komisyon na maglabas ng provisional authority.

“Both we in the senate and our counterparts in the house expressed our view that nothing should prevent the NTC from issuing a provisional authority to ABS-CBN until the issue of renewal or non renewal is settled by Congress,” saad ni Senador Risa Hontiveros. DANG SAMSON-GARCIA