THE franchise of ABS-CBN remains in limbo as lawmakers continuously questioning the dual citizenship of its chairman emeritus Eugenio Lopez III said this could pose threats to national interest and security.
The House Committees on Legislative Franchises and on Good Government and Public Accountability ended the fourth joint hearing on Monday without deciding on the issue of whether ABS-CBN should be granted a new franchise.
Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga said Lopez’s dual citizenship means having dual loyalties and allegiances.
Barzaga, citing the Constitution, said “dual allegiance of citizens is inimical to the national interest and shall be dealt with by law.”
Lawmakers are now looking whether dual citizens like Lopez could own a broadcast company in light of strict constitutional provision limiting the ownership of mass media to Filipino citizens.
Under Article XVI, Section 11 of the 1987 Constitution requiring that ownership and management of mass media shall be limited to citizens of the Philippines, or corporations, cooperatives or associations, wholly-owned and managed by these citizens.
As a dual citizen, Lopez is also a holder of both American and Filipino passports and was able to vote during the 2016 presidential elections in the US and the Philippines.
Cavite Rep. Jesus Crispin Remulla said dual allegiance is inimical to the national interest under the Constitution.
Remulla also asked for Lopez’s travel records, which he said shows that “he is more of an American than Filipino as he used his US passport more often than his Philippine passport, which he acquired only in 2001.”
“Under international law, a person carrying a passport of the United States is under protection by the US government and that is a declaration to the world that you are a citizen of America,” he added.
During the hearing, Lopez admitted that he used his US passport in a place more convenient and beneficial to be an American than a Filipino like in Europe, where American citizens are allowed to travel without visa.
Lopez said he uses his Philippine passport every time he travels to any Asean country where Filipinos are not required to obtain a visa.
House Deputy Speaker Rodante Marcoleta, for his part, questioned Lopez’s argument that he acquired his Filipino citizenship by jus sanguinis or a principle of nationality law by which citizenship is determined by the nationality or ethnicity of one or both parents.
“The principle of jus sanguinis is a legal fiction,” he said as he asked why Lopez decided to secure a Philippine passport only 40 years after he was born.
But Lopez reiterated that he has no allegiance with the United States despite his dual citizenship and he is “100-percent Filipino.”
Lopez also said he is a Filipino because both his parents are Filipinos.
Image credits: AP/Aaron Favila