Lunes, Marso 9, 2020
There's the recent peril that ABiaS-CBN is facing with having to switch to paid frequency or cable TV. Need I say that ABiaS-CBN shot itself at the foot whenever they kept antagonizing the need for constitutional reform since the 90s? Face it - Fidel V. Ramos' desire for constitutional reform was blasted out. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's desire too was also labeled as #GloriaForever constitution. Then you can consider how they're also against President Rodrigo R. Duterte's desire for constitutional reform. Worse, ABiaS-CBN apologists want to say it's an "attack on democracy"? Those ABiaS-CBN supporters do have a failure of mind going on if you ask me. The real peril ABiaS-CBN is facing is that it broke the laws regarding mass media. If that law didn't exist then ABiaS-CBN would've been able to continue to use the free frequencies. Instead, it's got itself boomeranged by the constitution they swore to protect believing themselves above it.
Let me remind you of the stupidity behind the purely Filipino-owned mass media idea. For one, Sariling Atin Only economy should be regarded as a stupid notion. Two, do we ever bother to see how often (and how STUPID) is it that economic protectionism is always promoted with IMPORTED PRODUCTS? Just look at all the materials used by the National Economic Protectionism Association (NEPA) - they are all IMPORTED. The same can be seen with the problem of the 1987 Constitution's current provision that mass media should be 100% Filipino-owned. The dilemma I'd love to raise is the provision can only work if all their equipment were 100% from the Philippines. Everything from constructing the facilities to the materials used for operating Filipino-owned networks must be 100% from the Philippines. I wonder are there any construction equipment or broadcasting that are Filipino brands and made with nothing but Filipino hands? You guessed it! There's none! That's why I find the whole provision stupid!
Here's a bit of a challenge to those who want to uphold "sariling atin only" in defense for ABiaS-CBN's renewal and deny to death the violations that were committed. They need to show that they aren't using anything imported. They're watching ABiaS-CBN or GMA-7 (and the yucky telebasuras in them) in the name of "nationalism" but was the TV set even made in the Philippines with a Filipino brand? Did they listen to DZMM Radio with a locally-made Filipino brand radio? If the Filipino mass media can't even operate without imported products then can these networks get their audience without them? Not that I'm encouraging colonial mentality but I'm saying that imports and exports run a country's economy. We need both imported and local products to survive.
The whole call for "nationalism" by the activists is but a sham. That's really a very simple way to explain why they are against economic reforms. It's all about barring competition from them so they can continue to operate with very little threats. However, that has caused them to be complacent. Filipino mass media is so bad because it hardly gets any real competition within its territory. If they can operate without imported products then the ridiculous law can continue. If not, they'll have to agree to open up the economy already because it's LONG OVERDUE.