I have avoided this topic for several weeks because it is rather sensitive, but one can only read so much slavering adulation in print and online for every word that comes out of President Duterte’s mouth, from zealots who were formerly critical thinkers, before it becomes a bit too much to stomach. Duterte’s attack against the ABS-CBN network is a step over the line. It is a huge setback for everything he says he stands for in terms of ridding government of corruption, irregularity and poor processes, and it is bad for business. Congress and the Supreme Court need to collectively grow a pair, and put a stop to a potential bad precedent before it actually becomes one.
The reason for Duterte’s intense annoyance with the Lopez-led network is that during the 2016 election campaign, according to him, ABS-CBN failed to air campaign advertising he (or his campaign organization, to be precise) had paid for, and instead ran an attack ad against him by his political foe and sworn enemy of the Makati hotel industry, then-Sen. Antonio Trillanes 4th.