Brothers and sisters, a free and democratic society promotes press freedom, particularly regarding open public affairs coverage, including the actions and movements of government officials. This is untrammeled press freedom, or free and independent media.
We are discussing press freedom because of the quo warranto petition of the solicitor general, the highest ranking lawyer in government, filed at the Supreme Court against ABS-CBN and its subsidiaries. This case is rooted in the so-called abuse of ABS-CBN, which allegedly took advantage of its followers or subscribers.
Even if there is debate on the possible effects of the case on the continued operations of the two ABS-CBN companies, the actions that the solicitor general had taken is deemed as harassment of one institution embodying press freedom. Under our laws, providing the franchise for media companies like ABS-CBN and its renewal is the duty of Congress. Therefore, the question now is, is the court case against ABS-CBN considered encroachment of congressional power?
The distribution of power among three branches of government—Executive, Legislative and Judiciary —is intentionally created in democratic systems of government to have “checks and balances” to avoid the abuse of power by any of the three branches. Each of these government branches embodies the interests of the people. They are there to check if one of these branches go overboard in using its power.
According to the teachings of the Church, this kind of governance is good for the governed when there is distribution of power of the state. It is mentioned in the Pacem in Terris that “Rule of Law” gives protection to the people not only in achieving their rights but also their fulfillment of their roles and responsibilities. It is also said in the teaching that order in society is important in protecting the rights of every individual and their organizations, as well as their fulfillment of duties. This means that if the media’s duty to spread news related to public issues in order to enlighten the people gets curtailed, the media must be protected.
The duty of disseminating truth is a responsibility that must not be betrayed. In the book of Esther 4:14, when queen Esther went to plead to the king to save the Jews, she was advised by her cousin Mordocheo: “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”
Brothers and sisters, we await what action the Supreme Court will take on SolGen’s petition, and what will the Congress do being the rightful branch of government that must respond and decide on the franchise application of ABS-CBN. Will they show independence from the Executive branch, and decide to take action according to the law?
Whether there are technicalities and many others related to this issue, let us observe these two important principles. First is the rule of law and the assertion against any attempt to use the law in order to uplift the interests of those who are in power. Second is press freedom. These are equally important in democracy, and it is everyone’s duty to help preserve these principles.
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