I am a Filipino – Lopez
ABS-CBN Corp. Chairman Emeritus Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez 3rd insisted that he is a Filipino WHEN HE ATTENDED FOR THE fiRST TIME THE JOINT committee hearing on the network’s franchise at the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
“I am a natural-born Filipino citizen because both my parents are Filipino citizens,” Lopez said.
“I am first and foremost a Filipino, I will live and die in the Philippines. I know in my
heart that I am a Filipino. All my actions in the last 35 years I’ve been associated with ABS-CBN have been in the service of the FilipinoL” he added.
His lawyerL Mario BautistaL said Lopez was a “dual citizen” as an “automatic legal consequence” both a FilipinoL being born to Filipino parentsL and an AmericanL being born in the United StatesL citing laws from both countries.
“SoL from the moment of birthL without doing anythingL without any overt act or choice, Mr. Lopez was automatically a Filipino citizen and an American citizen,” Bautista said.
Lopez’s citizenship was one of the grounds raised by some groups that opposed the granting of a fresh franchise to the network.
Under the lawL only naturalborn Filipino citizens can own media companies.
Lopez said he resided in the Philippines a year after he was born. He stayed in the US to study for college and post-graduate school and during the Martial Law years from 1977 to 1986, when he fled there with his father.
Some legislators agreed with Lopez that he is a Filipino.
“He is undeniably a natural-born Filipino citizen. No amount of interpellations would change this overriding and unalterable factL” Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said.
“Mr. Lopez, from the beginning, is a Filipino — no renunciation. And being a FilipinoL he can own a part of and participate in the management of mass media in conformity with the Philippine ConstitutionL”
Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, a former Bureau of Immigration commissionerL said.
“I don’t think that there is a decision of a competent court saying that he is no longer a FilipinoL” Minority Leader and Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani zarateL also a lawyerL said.
Lopez said he never renounced his Filipino citizenship and had never pledged allegiance to the US. He said he only sought recognition of his Filipino citizenship from the Department of Justice in 2001 to secure a Philippine passport.
“It was in recognition of being a natural-born citizen that I took it upon myself to ask for recognition of my citizenship. My understandingL from my lawyersL was that I am a natural born Filipino citizen because both my parents are Filipino citizens. But as I was not born in the PhilippinesL I did not have a Filipino birth certificate. So it behooved me to have a recognition by the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Immigration for whatever legal purposes I may use of that recognitionL” he said.
Justice Undersecretary Emmyline Aglipay-Villar affirmed that the certificate of recognition issued to him was not a grant but a confirmation of his Filipino citizenship by birth. She also maintained that the use of a US passport does not strip him off a Filipino citizenship.
Anakalusugan Rep. Mike Defen
sor and Ako Bicol Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr.L howeverL questioned if a dual citizen is allowed to own a mass media company. Defensor pointed out that public officials are required to have sole Filipino citizenship when running for office.
Bautista said the Constitution is silent on dual citizenship.
zarate affirmed that there was no distinction laid down in the Constitution and that in current laws natural-born FilipinosL whether with dual citizenship or not, may own a mass media company.
The next committee hearing will be held on Monday where more documents pertaining to the citizenship issue will be presented. This includes the certified copy of the Alien Identification Card signed by Lopez during his application for recognition at the Bureau of Immigration and his US passport renewal application.
Digital issues
MeanwhileL in a letter addressed to the committeeL the Federation of International Cable TV and Telecommunications Associations of the Philippines (Fictap) raised the question on putting back the clause “where frequencies and/ or channels are still availableL” in House Bill 6732L which they opposed as it might not support the “One FranchiseL One Channel” policy based on Presidential Decree 576-A.
It pointed out that ABS-CBN must obtain a permit from the National Telecommunications Commission on operating analog and
digital technologies such as TVPlusL pay TV and KBO.
“Hindi porke’ t po sib len as’ ya dahilsa technology ay automatic naligalkana—‘yanpoanghindi main tin di ha no a yaw int in di hinng ilan.Da pat poLkuk uh ak am una ngl is en s ya k asian g Pi lip in as Lang taong bay anang may-a ring mg a frequencies na ga ga mi tin. Kay ada pat L nag pa pa ala mm una. Li man gt a on n aka mi si mu lang mag tan ongLw ala po si lang map a ki tang li sens ya( It doesn’t mean that because of technologyL you are automatically legal — ‘that is what people don’t and won’t understand. A license must be first granted because frequencies are owned by the people. There must be permission. It has been five years and they cannot show any license)L” the letter sent by Fictap Chairman Estrellita Juliano-Tamano said.
The group also questioned why the operations of TVPlus continue to operate despite the expired franchise.
“Na gt anongpok ami at na pa gala man C han nel43d aw anggamitng ABS-CBN TVplus sa Metro Manila. TinignanponaminL ehangoriginalna grantee ng Channel 43 sa Metro Manila ayhindi namansi ABS-CBN Corp. Bakit si ABS-CBN Corp. anggumagamit? (We asked and learned that ABSCBN Plus uses Channel 43 in Metro Manila. We saw that the original grantee of Channel 43 in Metro Manila is not ABS-CBN Corp. Why is ABS-CBN using it?)L” it said.
The group said the company sold 9 million units of TVPlus for the past five years, which was projected at P13.5 billion.