The hearing on the New Bilibid Prisons drug trade resumes today at the Batasan Pambansa. (Photo credit: Roices Naguit)
The House of Representatives’ hearing on the drug trade at the New Bilibid Prisons resumes today.
The third part of the hearings will feature notable witnesses such as Bureau of Corrections officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos and former intelligence officer Joenel Sanchez. The House has also sent invitations to former Bucor general Franklin Bucayu, former driver of Leila de Lima Ronnie Dayan, and convicted inmate Jaybee Sebastian.
All of the witnesses will be presented by the Department of Justice. On a related note, the alleged sex video of Leila de Lima will no longer be shown at the hearings due to negative criticisms.
Broadcast-wise, the hearings will again be seen live in most major news outlets both online and on traditional media. The question is, is News5 fully committed to carrying the hearings?
It can be recalled that during the House hearings that took place on September 20 and 21, News5 only aired the entirety of the proceedings online, with AksyonTV partially participating and Radyo5 92.3 News FM ignoring it altogether. News5’s non-airing of the hearings on traditional media was heavily criticized, and its apparent ignorance serves as an insult to TV5 in general.
While ‘Relasyon’ and ‘Wanted sa Radyo’ are just some of the most popular shows on Radyo5, preempting the two shows in favor of live hearings could have benefited the Kapatid follower. After all, unlike the ‘Big Three’ in AM that are DZBB, DZMM and DZRH, Radyo5 can be accessible on most mobile devices (e.g. cellphones), thus giving them an advantage.
Still, with due respect to Luchi Cruz-Valdes, Gladys Lana-Lucas, Atty. Mel Sta. Maria, Raffy Tulfo and Niña Taduran, every once in a while they should have given way to important events such as this. Once they show up to host their respective programs in an occasion of utmost importance, it will be an utter disgrace to the community of journalists.
Let’s just hope that News5 finally comes to their senses and air this hearing on their broadcast networks. Otherwise, expect even greater criticism from this embattled outlet.
As for the rest of the stations (e.g. DZMM TeleRadyo, GMA News TV, CNN Philippines, ABS-CBN News Channel), good luck again on this marathon. Every word and movement on this hearing will be very crucial towards delivering the utmost truth.
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