WITH 284 lawmakers voting in affirmative, four against and four abstentions, the House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on third and final reading a bill seeking to revoke the legislative franchise granted to Swara Sug Media Corporation, operating as Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI).
House Bill (HB) 9710 effectively repeals Republic Act (RA)11422, which extended the franchise granted to Suara Sug under RA 8122 for an additional 25 years in August 2019. The renewed franchise was originally scheduled to expire in 2044.
The revocation of SMNI’s franchise was prompted by a series of alleged violations, including spreading fake news, involvement in red-tagging and committing significant corporate offenses.
HB 9710 was authored by Reps. Rodge Gutierrez (1-RIDER Party-List), Jude Acidre (TINGOG Party-List), Yevgeny Vicente Emano (Misamis Oriental, 2nd District), Emerson Pascual (Nueva Ecija, 4th District), and Eulogio Rodriguez (Catanduanes, Lone District).
The bill was sponsored by Parañaque City 2nd District Rep. Gus Tambunting, who chairs the House Committee on Legislative Franchises.
After conducting six hearings over five months since November 2023, the Tambunting panel concluded that SMNI committed “multiple grave infractions in violation of its franchise grant.”
The congressional inquiry stemmed from allegations made by SMNI hosts on the “Laban Kasama ng Bayan” program, claiming that Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez spent P1.8 billion on travel within a year.
House officials refuted the allegation, citing official records showing that the entire chamber incurred P39.6 million in travel expenses from January to October 2023, with the Office of the Speaker disbursing only P4.3 million.
SMNI also drew criticism when former President Rodrigo Duterte rebuked the House leadership for redirecting P650 million in confidential funds from the office of Vice President Sara Duterte and the Department of Education to government agencies responsible for securing the West Philippine Sea amid China’s persistent harassment.
In light of its investigation, the franchise committee found SMNI culpable of failing to deliver truthful and balanced reporting, citing multiple cases filed against it for red-tagging, disseminating fake news and making baseless accusations against House members, a former vice president, and private individuals.
SMNI was also accused of attempting to sow discord between the two houses of Congress by insinuating unverified Senate claims about the House spending P1.8 billion on travel expenses in 2023.
SMNI openly admitted to transitioning from a non-stock, non-profit corporation to a sole corporation under Pastor Apollo Quiboloy in 2006.
Later, in 2023, the controlling stake was transferred to Bro. Marlon Acobo, with both transactions taking place without obtaining congressional approval.
Section 10 of RA 11422 stipulates the requisite congressional approval for such changes, explicitly prohibiting the sale, lease, transfer, or assignment of the franchise without prior congressional consent.
The same section mandates informing Congress within 60 days of any transaction involving the franchise’s sale, lease, transfer, or assignment.
Failure to report such changes of ownership, as mandated by Section 10, automatically triggers the revocation of the franchise.
