Comelec orders re-opening of radio station

CAUAYAN City, Isabela — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has ordered the re-opening of Bombo Radyo dzNC Cauayan which it shut down on the eve of the May 10 elections

In two-page Resolution No. 7127 dated May 16, the Comelec en banc reconsidered its unnumbered resolution on May 9 ordering the closure of the radio station.

Last March 25, the poll body directed the city government to allow the resumption of operations of Bombo Radyo dzNC, warning Mayor Caesar Dy that he would be cited in contempt if he would disobey its order.

Dy is a half-brother of re-electionist Gov. Faustino Dy Jr.

Acceding to the advice of his lawyers, Dy permitted the radio station to return on air even without a mayor’s permit, saying that he recognizes the authority of the Comelec, being the most powerful body during the election period.

The city government, however, filed a motion asking the Comelec to reconsider its March 25 resolution.

On the eve of Election Day, the commission issued an unnumbered resolution signed by four of its seven commissioners ruling in favor of the city government and in effect, sustaining its authority to shut down the radio station due to its failure to submit documents for a mayor’s permit.

The Comelec argued that the radio station’s closure by the city government was not election-related.

Zoning Violation

Cauayan officials also claimed that Bombo Radyo dzNC violated the city zoning ordinance.

They said the facilities of Bombo Radyo dzNC stand on an agricultural lot in Ba—rangay Minante Dos which is not exempted from the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

Escorted by at least 20 policemen, Dy led the City Hall team which enforced the Comelec resolution and cut off the radio station’s electric cables.

Bishop Sergio Utleg of the Diocese of Ilagan questioned the authenticity of the resolution, saying that its promulgation was irregular.

He alleged that there was a conspiracy behind the issuance of the resolution to stop Bombo Radyo dzNC from covering the province-wide polls.

Utleg said Bombo Radyo’s province-wide coverage could deter cheating in the local elections.

Armed with the Comelec’s May 16 resolution, Bombo Radyo dzNC manager Charmy Sabigan switched on the radio station’s signal and went on air at about 7 a.m. last Monday.

In her commentary, Sabigan berated Dy and Chief Superintendent Jefferson Soriano, Cagayan Valley police director, for enforcing the Comelec’s earlier questionable order.

Dy and Sabigan had a falling-out because the mayor claimed that she has a love child. She filed a libel suit against the mayor; the case remains pending in the provincial prosecutor’s office. — Lito Salatan