State-run broadcasting community IBC-13, which the federal government is seeking to promote, has decried the federal government’s proposal to offer it a finances of zero for the second straight 12 months in 2024.
Network president Jose Policarpio, Jr. stated that IBC-13 has been unable to pay P500 million in retirement pay to former staff.
“Twenty-five of them [have] died, 10 are in the hospital, while 10 are still waiting. Madam Chair, we have been under 29 different managements. How come it went this far? Why is there so much unpaid retirement?” he stated throughout the deliberations on the Presidential Communications Office’s (PCO) proposed P1.79-billion finances for 2024 earlier than the House appropriations panel.
“Some suggested that I raise this with the [Commission on Human Rights]…nakakahiya po. We really need to give the most importance to the payment of the retirement pay,” he added.
Policarpio stated that with out a finances for 2024, IBC-13 will even be unable to adjust to the National Telecommunications Commission’s mandate for broadcasting networks to shift from analog to digital.
He stated that IBC-13 has been surviving attributable to congressional realignments within the nationwide finances initiated by Senators Bong Go, JV Ejercito and then-Senator Richard Gordon value round P226 million from 2021 to 2023.
“We really need more budget for our capital expenditure,” he stated.
PTV-4
The name for extra finances was echoed by state-run PTV-4’s Acting General Manager Analisa Puod.
“In February, we will be 50 years old. It is a milestone and we want to mark that with regularization of our contract of service staff. The last time PTV-4 regularized its employees was in 2001,” she stated.
“It has been 20 years, and they have been denied this opportunity [to be regularized]. We want to regularize 100 to 120 employees next year,” she added.
Puod additionally stated extra funds are additionally wanted for PTV-4 to shift from analog to digital.
PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil then requested Congress to amend the proposed finances to incorporate a basic provision mandating authorities companies to put their data campaigns or commercials on PTV-4, IBC-13 and Radyo Pilipinas to ramp up their budgets.
House appropriations panel senior vice chairperson Stella Quimbo of Marikina metropolis was receptive to the concept, in addition to lawmakers Edcel Lagman of Albay and Sandro Marcos of Ilocos Norte. — BM, GMA Integrated News
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
