CFI coop asks judge to inhibit from case of Bantay Radyo

THE  judge hearing the dispute  over the management of  El  Nuevo Bantay Radyo was asked to inhibit himself from the case.

In a pleading, lawyer Joan Largo of the Cebu CFI Community Cooperative Inc. said the judge had prejudged the case in favor of the complainant, Pafi Foundation, by stopping the  coop from taking over the network.

Judge Alexander Acosta of the Regional Trial Court  Branch 9 earlier granted a writ of preliminary injunction stopping the coop from taking over the management contract after it expired last July 31.

The judge  ruled that the P700,000 paid by Pafi Foundation to Sarraga Integration and Management (SIAM) Broadcasting Corp. was a “tacit renewal” of its contract between the owner of the radio station and the private firm.

“By making this erroneous finding, the honorable court has prejudged the merits of the case,” said Largo, who described the judge as showing “partiality” to the plaintiff, Pafi Foundation.

She said the  P700,000 remittance wasn’t intended to extend the contract but was   payment of a long delayed obligation of Pafi Foundation to SIAM. The lawyer  said it was  better for the judge to let go of the case to avoid suspicions.

Pafi Foundation of the  late Cebu vice governor Greg Sanchez Jr. is  headed by his daughter  Cebu Provincial Board Member Grecilda Sanchez-Zaballero as CEO.

Zaballero has said she would hold on to Bantay Radyo, rather than let it fall in the hands of the cooperative identified with the Garcias, who has several family members running for office as opposition candidates in 2016.

Pafi lawyer Edgar Gica said the CFI coop has no right to accuse Judge Acosta of bias.

“The orders, writs, and processes he issued are based on the preliminary evidence established and the applicable law and rule on the matter,” Gica said in a text message to CDN.

Pafi Foundation earlier sued  SIAM for specific performance  and damages after the franchise owner based in Cagayan de Oro city decided not to renew the management contract with Pafi and to sign on Cebu CFI instead.

On August 1, SIAM representatives entered three stations of Bantay Radyo in Cebu and Negros, and removed electronic “exciters” that control the radio frequencies, forcing the stations off the air.   The court ordered SIAM to observe a status quo and retore the devices while the main case is being heard in court.