ABS-CBN vice chairman Atty. Augusto “Jake” Almeda-Lopez appealed to Congress to recognize the value and the major contributions of ABS-CBN and its 11,000 workers to the country.
“Can you give me another two minutes? You know we are fighting for our lives,” said Almeda-Lopez during the House panel committee hearing on the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN.
“We deserve the renewal of our franchise, and that if you don’t renew our franchise you’re going to deprive the public of so much entertainment, news, and more or less the building of culture,” he said.
Almeda-Lopez emphasized that ABS-CBN is more than just TV channel 2 and DZMM AM radio and that it has made key contributions to the nation such as the Knowledge Channel.
“Knowledge Channel is a very important public service we are providing. It was even cited and awarded by the United Nations as one of the most effective public service programs in the country,” he said.
He likewise mentioned how ABS-CBN Foundation has been providing relevant public service programs, as it has been “the first responder or one of the first responders to any disasters in this country.”
Almeda-Lopez, who was general manager of ABS-CBN in 1966, also cited the Foundation’s Bantay Bata program that rescues and protects Filipino children from abuse, the Pasig River clean-up program, and several medical missions rendered “in the service of the Filipino.”
“So I plead to the members of Congress to give ABS-CBN a chance to show its worth and contribution to the country,” he said.