HARD TALK
ni Pilar Mateo
USAPANG badyet!
ISINUMITE ng Senate Committee on Finance para sa konsiderasyon ng Senate plenary ang panukalang badyet ng Movie and Television Review and Classification Board MTRCB.
Idiniin ng Ahensiya ang kahandaan nito na isagawa ang pag-regulate ng online services, streaming platforms, at subscription video on-demand sakaling idagdag ito sa mandato ng MTRCB.
Lubos na pinasalamatan ni MTRCB Chair at CEO Lala Sotto ang Senate Committee on Finance at si Senator Erwin Tulfo, ang chairperson ng Senate finance panel sub-committee H, na pinangunahan ang budget hearing ngayong Biyernes.
“On behalf of the Board and the Agency’s officers and staff, I thank the Senate for its wholehearted support and confidence in the MTRCB, ‘This further strengthens our commitment to continue protecting Filipino children, promoting responsible viewing and age-appropriate content and advocating for the industry’s growth,” sabi ni Sotto.
“As the media landscape continues to evolve, we also remain ready and responsive to the changing call of the times while keeping in mind that we should always serve the public with a deep sense of integrity, accountability, and responsibility,” dagdag niya.
Tiniyak din ng MTRCB Chairperson na ipagpapatuloy nila ang maingat na paggamit ng pondo ng bayan.
Sa isang naunang Annual Audit Report (AAR), nakatanggap ng Unmodified Opinion ang MTRCB mula sa Commission on Audit (COA).
Sabi ng COA, makatarungan at tumpak na naipakita ng MTRCB ang kalagayang pampinansiyal, mga resulta ng operasyon, cash lows, at iba pang mahahalagang financial information.
Binigyan naman ng Department of Budget and Management (DBM) ng “Very Satisfactory” rating para sa 2025 ang MTRCB at ng total performance score na 4.58 percent dahil sa efficient resource management, fund utilization at ang agarang pagsusumite ng mga kinakailangang ulat.
Para sa taong 2027, aabot sa P197.89-M ang panukalang budget ng MTRCB, Kasama rito ang P53.39-M para sa personnel services (PS) at retirement and life insurance premium (RLIP) na manggagaling sa national government.
Ang pondo para sa maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) at capital outlay (CO) ay manggagaling sa sariling kita ng Ahensiya.
Napagtanto ni Tulfo ang kahandaan ng MTRCB na gawin ang regulation ng online services, streaming platforms, at subscription video on-demand, sakaling palawakin ng Kongreso ang responsibilidad ng Ahensiya.
Sabi niya, hindi lamang sa telebisyon at sine nanonood ng content ang mga Filipino.
“Hindi lamang sa telebisyon at sine nanonood ng content ang mga Filipino, kundi pati na rin sa streaming platforms at iba’t ibang digital channel,m.
“Our children, in particular, have unprecedented access to content. We, therefore, need to ask whether our regulatory framework is keeping pace with these changes,” diin ni Tulfo.
Bilang tugon, nilinaw ni Sotto na ang MTRCB ay “not for prohibition, but for regulation.
“We will accept the challenge if the legislators would include the said online services, streaming platforms and the subscription video on-demand services in our jurisdiction or our purview. However, it would entail a lot of coordination with the said stakeholders such as the OTT’s or the over-the-top, and the online streaming Services,” sabi pa.
Ipinaliwanag ni Sotto na sa pag-regulate ng streaming platform at subscription video on-demand, hindi kailangan na i-review ang mga pelikulang ipalalabas.
“What we need from them is to establish a very effective feedback mechanism where they will commit to accountability and responsiveness t the MTRCB for- when complaints are raised and expressed to the said online streaming provider. There should be an answer. there should be a commitment that they will work on these concerns and that they’re very much willing to help the MTRCB,” aniya. “Currently, we are working with Netflix and HBO and Disney and they’ve been very cooperative.”
Dagdag pa: “We really need to reiterate that this regulation is possible, but we would need their cooperation and their coordination as well.”
Matapos ang pag-endoso ng panukalang badyet ng MTRCB para sa susunod na taon, sasailalim ito sa deliberasyon sa plenary level sa susunod na linggo.
