Keen on taking over management of El Nuevo Bantay Radyo, the Cebu CFI Community Cooperative Inc. has asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to intervene.
A petition for certiorari was filed on Thursday with the appellate court in Cebu City seeking to set aside a preliminary injunction of the Regional Trial Court (RTC).
CFI lawyers Joan Largo and Lito Astillero asked the CA Cebu City Station to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) and a writ of preliminary injunction to stop RTC Judge Alexander Acosta from conducting further proceedings in the case, and to stop the implementation of Acosta’s injunction order.
Last Monday, the Cebu RTC ordered a status quo in the operation of Bantay Radyo, and directed the franchise holder Sarraga Integration and Management Broadcasting Corp. (SIAM) to return electronic devices called “exciters” whose removal from three Bantay Radyo transmitters forced them off the air.
SIAM and the cooperative were ordered to observe a status quo in the management of the stations by the Pafi Foundation headed by Provincial Board Member Grecilda Sanchez-Zaballero.
In the petition for certiorari, the CFI cooperative sought the dismissal of the case filed by Pafi Foundation against SIAM and the cooperative.
Named respondents in the petition for certiorari were Judge Acosta and Pafi Foundation.
In their petition, Largo said she could not understand why the judge issued a TRO and later an injunction stopping SIAM’s plan to turn over the management of dyDD, dyHH and dyZZ to the cooperative.
Largo said the trial court no longer had authority to act on the order since the dispute was referred for arbitration.
She said Judge Acosta “gravely abused” his discretion in giving way to the application for a TRO and preliminary injunction.
She noted Pafi Foundation’s admission that there was no signed contract with SIAM renewing any Management Agreement.
“If at all, what existed between Pafi and SIAM was a draft contract, rejected by SIAM, hence, and at best, a disputed claim,” Largo said.
“There is no contract by and between SIAM and Pafi. In contrast, there is a perfected and signed contract between SIAM And CFI, yet the void order restrains CFI from managing the radio stations,” she added.
Pafi earlier filed a civil case for specific performance against SIAM after the Cagayan de Oro-based commercial broadcast station refused to renew its contract and signed on the CFI cooperative to run three stations of El Nuevo Bantay Radyo after the contract expired July 31.
The foundation founded by the late vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr. operated the radio stations since 2002.
The judge said the P700,000 deposited by Zaballero in SIAM’s account as initial payment for the extended management agreement was “tacit renewal” of the contract.
The merits of the main civil case have yet to be resolved by the court.
If SIAM cancels its contract with Pafi, Zaballero said their family would suffer damage since they already had agreements with third parties for the purchase of radio block time and other similar arrangements.
In interviews, Zaballero said she didn’t want the radio stations to be used by the Garcia family in the 2016 elections considering the cooperative was under their influence.
SIAM holds the congressional franchise to build and operate stations dyDD based in Cebu City, dyHH in Hibaiyo, Negros and dyZZ based in Bogo City.
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