Remember Gabby Lopez, you went to Davao. You opened the cable kasi meron doong existing… And you thought that I was one of the investors.

Pumunta ka sa akin, sabi mo — sabi ko — sabi niya may — “Meron nga kaming application.”

Huwag mong bolahin sarili mo. Marami tayong kaharap doon. Tapos sabi ko “Bakit?” “Eh mayor ka eh, investor ka.”

Tapos sabi ko “Where is your permit?” Blangko ‘yung papel mo, pinirmahan ko, approved ko. Then that night you kept calling me for dinner. Sabi ko, “No.” Did I ask you for anything? Contribution something?

Ipinatawag mo ako doon sa opisina mo before the elections. You asked me, “Are you running?” I said, “No.”

Kaya ‘yung lahat kayo nung nanalo ako, wala akong utang na loob sa inyo ni konti and even the ‘yung mga…  But for those guys who offered, I accepted.  Pero ‘yung sabi mo na papuntahin mo ako doon, pabigyan mo akong pera, ay p***** i**, g*** ka.  

MANILA — In 2007, Gabby Lopez, the head of broadcasting giant ABS-CBN, publicly commended their reporter Wheng Hidalgo for serving as a good example of how far a “kapamilya” would go to help a “kapamilya.” During a segment of the network’s program TV Patrol, an official of the Malacañang Office for Religious Affairs was seen slamming the door in Ms Hidalgo’s face after she unearthed and reported an anomaly involving a missing money donation for a cancer patient.

Last week, though, it was the ABS-CBN that slammed its door in Hidalgo’s face, figuratively speaking, after the reporter’s seven-year complaint with the DOLE against ABS-CBN unearthed anomalies in the network’s treatment of its employees. Ms Hidalgo’s termination followed months of seeming discrimination in her work schedule as word came out that the DOLE would favorably decide on her and five other reporters’ labor case , which they filed last 2003.

Her termination (or end of contract, from the point of view of ABS-CBN management) followed the DOLE decision saying Hidalgo is supposed to be treated as a regular employee by ABS-CBN. It turned out that despite having been with ABS-CBN for 16 years, Hidalgo is not a regular but a contractual employee. She said they sometimes work without contract. Although the DOLE decision has favored her, the ABS-CBN does not appear in the mood to follow it.

When Hidalgo’s latest six-month employment contract lapsed last August 31, the ABS-CBN management “offered” her a “regularization package” that neither recognized her 16-year tenure nor promised her the backwages and other benefits that she should have received for much of 16 years, if ABS-CBN had followed the law and recognized her as a regular employee. The so-called regularization gave her the salary rates of a starting reporter. On top of it, ABS-CBN wanted Hidalgo to drop her labor complaint.

“How could I accept that?” Hidalgo asked.

She told Bulatlat that she was even willing to forgo the backwages and retroactive benefits as long as the company at least recognized her 16-year tenure. But no, she lamented, she was treated instead like she’s privileged the company still deigned to talk to her about regularizing her after she had filed a case against it.

Employee Abuses in ABS-CBN

Ms Hidalgo’s case points to other similar employee abuses and violations of the Labor Code in the profitable network. Aside from Ms. Hidalgo, more than a hundred employees in the thousand-strong IJM (internal job market), who had been employed from five to 20 years at the company, have been terminated since June this year when they refused to drop their complaints or agree to regularizations that came with pay cuts, erased years of work history with the company, among other “lopsided” terms, as the ABS-CBN IJM Workers Union reported. Other regularizations offered this year are covered by fixed-term contracts.

If the working condition of employees in ABS-CBN’s internal job market, a pool of talents or workers’ database as ABS-CBN called them, is appalling and deplorable enough for its employees to seek the DOLE’s help, the working condition of other employees seemed even worse.

Hidalgo for instance explained that she was with IPC (intellectual property creators), which is like IJM except that the IJM workers use their skills on machines, while the IPCs are supposed to be “talents” per project or paid for their “artistic output.”

The IJM’s, IPC’s and the TS (or technical staff) – all used to be part of unionized and regularized rank and file employees– are “talents” that in ABS-CBN’s practice are not governed by the country’s eight-hour work law, mandatory vacation or sick leave. Some do not even have Pag-ibig or SSS membership.

Reporters may work eight to 16 hours a day but their pay remains the same. They get no overtime pay. If they worked overnight, then that is only the time they can offset it with a day-off, but that depends on whether the operation would not suffer with this proposed day off.

It is “no-work, no-pay” for thousands of ABS-CBN’s non-regular employees, said Hidalgo. These non-regular employees are the same employees that the DOLE said should have been regarded as regular.

From the time she began working in ABS-CBN in 1994, when the network took her in after her student practicum there, Hidalgo said she had never taken a vacation or leave of absence, except for one month when she delivered her baby. And that was an unpaid leave.

Hidalgo seemed very used to working nonstop that as soon as she lost her job, the one and only job she has had since she graduated from college, she suffered a severe gut-wrenching illness that forced her to rush to a hospital emergency room.

A reporter on leave also told Bulatlat that as talents frequently seen on TV, the BIR people who want to tax them more could not seem to understand that they do not earn that much, really.

He said he himself had also visited the offices of Pag-ibig to register as a member, but the employees there directed him instead to the ABS-CBN human resources.

“I have been with ABS-CBN for six years, but my individual application had to be handled by the company liaison to Pag-ibig, who told me that Pag-ibig is only for regular employees.”

Hidalgo and this male reporter told Bulatlat that even if they face the cameras as part of their jobs, they also pay for their own grooming. And when they research their stories, they must pay for their own health insurance.

While reporters may go out of their way for a story, brave bullets, back hoes, floodwaters, slamming doors, hostage-takers, among others, he said they started to receive life insurance from ABS-CBN only recently, and at very small rates at that. Starting this year, the two reporters said the company began insuring the non-regulars for P100,000 ($2,278) and the regular employees for P400,000 ($9,115) .

Shocking Treatment

Considering the positive DOLE decision on her case, Hidalgo was shocked at having lost her job. Her desk editors and immediate superiors had reportedly liked her work, enough to give her assignments and recommend her for regularization. “I cannot understand why…I gave ABS-CBN my service, love, loyalty,” she said.

The male reporter who had been with ABS-CBN for six years, said he cannot understand it either. “We have sacrificed many family reunions for shows during holiday seasons, Holy Week; we have lost a lot of sleep over our jobs.”

The two are glad that many progressive party list groups and organizations are taking up the ABS-CBN employees’ cases. “I would push through with the case I filed,” Hidalgo said. She vowed to pursue the implementation of DOLE’s decision on her case.

As this developed, an alliance of labor advocates called Defend Job Philippines, embarked on a signature drive urging job defenders, workers’ unions, workers’ council and international labor organizations, solidarity groups, workers’ rights advocates, students, televiewers, human rights defenders, non government organizations, fellow citizens and concerned people to support calls to, among others:

•“Pressure the ABS-CBN to reinstate without condition all of the 110 ABS CBN employees it illegally dismissed this year;

•Urge ABS-CBN to stop the illegal dismissal of workers and discriminatory regularization scheme. Stop contractualization and outsourcing. Regularize all ABS CBN/IJM Workers;

•Urge ABS-CBN to stop harassing its workers and respect instead its workers’ rights to organize a union; and

•Urge the new administration of President Aquino, the Department of Labor and Employment and all government agencies concerned, to act in favor of ABS CBN employees who are only asserting their rights.”

The youth group Anakbayan, meanwhile, charged that “Gabby Lopez is confident that as a crony of the new President, he would be allowed to carry out his anti-worker schemes with impunity.”

The Lopezes are known supporters of Aquino’s presidential candidacy. The ABS-CBN network has allegedly supported Aquino’s candidacy through biased reporting. A reporter of the network has also been appointed in Aquino’s cabinet.

Anakbayan spokesperson Charisse Bañez dared President Benigno Aquino to publicly condemn the mass dismissals of employees in the ABS-CBN network, “if he truly favors the interest of common Filipinos over his perceived cronies such as the Lopezes of the ABS-CBN.” 

Originally posted September 11, 2010 with the title For ABS-CBN, Six to 16 Years of Service to the Company Does Not Seem to Matter on Bulatlat.com

To the detriment of the Filipino people, hear me out. Iyong propiedad ng tao, ng gobyerno; sa panahon ko, isasauli ninyo. Return it to the government, at baka magamit ko pa.

Iyong Mile Long Creek diyan sa Makati, which is occupied by the Inquirer and the Dunkin Donut, iyan ang may-ari ng Inquirer, you got that property for 25 years for a song. Then another 25 years as a sweetheart deal.

It ended several years ago, ang ginawa ninyo, mag-file ng kaso and ito namang mga korte, kayong sa judiciary, you better come to your senses. Kasi kayong mga taga mga judges, either nabibili kayo, o talagang bobo kayo, o kontra Pilipino kayo.

That property should have been returned to the government kasi kung isauli iyan, ipagbili ko iyan, bidding. At gawain kong bahay para sa tao, masiguro ninyo iyan. But return it to the people. Kaya’t kayong mga sa judiciary, you are so very easy just issuing TRO, Restraining Order.

If somebody wants to move, he goes to court, and I’m inclined to believe, nabibili kayo kasi TRO should not be given— what for? Ito, may isang bidding: nanalo si A, talo si B. ‘Pag award na, tatakbo ito sa korte, mag-TRO; ang project, mahinto. Dahil itong (expletive) natalo, maghingi rin siya ng pera, “Bigyan mo na ako nang konting pera, okay na, i-withdraw ko na ito.”

Dito sa Pilipinas, (expletive) gobyerno, lahat, pera-pera lang. Stop it!

Kayong mga huwes, it should be the last. Do not wait, kaya kong magpakulong. I will rot in prison but do not wait for the time na hindi na ako maniwala sa inyo. Because if you keep on hostaging, i-hostage ninyo iyang property ng gobyerno na magamit pa namin para sa tao, tapos you delay, delay and delay dahil sa pera, baka pagdating ng araw, hindi na ako maniwala sa inyo.

I will just say, “To hell with you.” At sasabihin ko sa mga tao, “Ito, punta kayo ng Maynila, property ninyo iyan, hinahawakan for 50 years and it’s about to repossessed again for another 50 years, kunin ninyo iyang propiedad ninyo Inyo iyan. Occupy the place, mamili kayo ng inyong lugar diyan.” Sasabihin ko sa tao iyan. Huwag kayong matakot ng aresto. Hindi kayo puwedeng arestuhin, kasi iyang lupa na aagawin ninyo, inyo iyan.

Pinapatagal lang nitong mga korteng mga corrupt na justices, pati huwes. Ako, hindi ako nagsasalita nang ganoon noon eh, abogado ako. I’ve always been courteous in my words in the past months, pero nagsasawa na ako. Sabi ko, maniwala ako sa inyo, ang administrasyon ko, walang magawa para sa tao.

Pagka ganoon, hindi ako papayag, either kayo ang babagsak o ako. Either way, komportable ako. I can rot in prison. I can go to prison. And as I’ve said, dito sa presidency ko, itataya ko ang buhay ko, ang honor ko, pati ang presidency mismo. Wala akong ano—either way, maalis ako, matanggal ako, makulong, okay lang.

Huwag lang ninyong lulu-in ang taong bayan. Inaano ninyo eh. Kayo iyong kung mag-publish, when you criticize government, kami, kung mag-editorial kayo, kami para nang— you picture us as if we are pinakamagnanakaw sa buong sa lahat mundo.

When as a matter of fact, kayo iyong sige na binababoy ninyo kami. Kung ano na lang itatapon ninyo sa newspaper, pati iyang ABS na iyan. Isa ka pang (expletive) mga mukhang pera. Tapos, kung mag-editorialize kayo, iyong mga komentaryo ninyo, kami ang masasama.

Actually, kayo ang magnanakaw eh. Gabby Lopez, I paid ABS-CBN two million eight hundred. I was only able to gather money during the last weeks of my candidacy, noong tumaas na ang rating ko, because historically: 3-4, 3-4, 3-4 lang ako. Then, suddenly, two weeks, nag-akyat ako ng 36%.

Dumating na iyong pera, nagmakaawa ako sa inyo kasi wala akong pera, wala akong historical propaganda sa TV, sabi ko, “Puwede ba ito, isingit ninyo?” Tinanggap ninyo iyong pera ko, you never bothered to show my propaganda. Pagkatapos ng eleksyon, kinalimutan na ninyo, hindi naman ninyo sinauli iyong pera.

You did it to me, kay Romulo, kay Cayetano, kay Chiz Escudero at marami pa. Ngayong franchise ninyo, kumpiyansa kayo because ang franchise is renewable this year. If you are in operation for 25 years, maganda ang record mo, no need for another franchise.

But I’m telling you now, I will be filing charges of multiple syndicated estafa. Ka-walanghiya ninyo, mga baga mo og nawong, ang kakapal ng mukha, (expletive) kayo! Letse, kayo iyong mayayaman, kami pa iyong mga pobreng pulitiko ang sasalsalin ninyo.

Sabi ko, huminto kayong mga mayayaman sa Davao. Kayo ba, mga lolo ninyo, saan nila kinuha ang pera nila noong binili nila iyong mga ano ninyo? They got it from government. They never used their own money, historically, iyong mga lolo ninyo, nag-acquire niyang mga ano ninyo.

They borrowed money because they had influence at that time, and they could borrow thousands of pesos at that time. Hindi iyong sabihin ninyo, ang puwis ng— pawis ninyo?

Iyan ang totoo diyan. You trace the history of your wealth, and you would see that all were borrowed money from the government. Kasi iyong pera doon sa bangko, pera ng tao iyon. Mabuti nang magklaru-klaro ta ba.

You might want to— press freedom. Press freedom, kayo iyong number one na magnanakaw, ayaw ninyong isauli iyong propiedad— press freedom? Kami, how about our freedom? We have our freedom of expression, to express our anger, and that is also my constitutional right.

You, you’re a bullshit. You, mukha kayong pera. Kakapal ng mukha ninyo, kayong taga-media. You want to know my sentiments? (expletive) you.