The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
ABS-CBN has always been my home network even if I am not part of it anymore.
In my heart, I will forever be a Kapamilya.
It is where my full blast broadcast career blossomed and came to fruition.
Even if I left a rosy, famous and wealthy life I don’t give a damn as I know it’s not the end of the world if not the be-all and end-all of existence when I opted to build a theater group in my countryside town of Lopez in Quezon Province.
I also chose to enrich my writing in Filipino and the King’s Language.
In the news, ABS-CBN President Carlo Katigbak announced that the station has abandoned its franchise application altogether and decided instead to focus on content creation for free TV and digital platforms.
My heart bleeds but what can I do.
Life has to go on.
ABS-CBN can take care of itself.
Just like my former producer and news anchor of entertainment events for “TV Patrol”‘s “Star News” Angelique Lazo who is now a top honcho for the news and public affairs of PTV Channel 4.
In the advent of a professional life-changing landscape of ABS-CBN, Angelique was invited by her group of friends and erstwhile colleagues to revisit the network they all jumpstarted in the mid-eighties.
Here’s Lazo’s insightful and haunting account of the past and current state of her former studio as published in her Facebook wall:
“I took some time off from work today to be with the 86ers, the happy but talented and tireless bunch of pioneers who joined ABS-CBN when it returned to the airwaves in 1986. Back then, the fledgling network had one phone for all the departments. We practically started from scratch with a couple of old rickety vehicles which we commandeered to do our production and news work. We initially taped our newscasts and cheered wildly when the first commercial was aired. Then slowly and by dint of sheer will and hard work, the Network rose from the ashes. It has since grown by leaps and bounds and made a distinct mark in the hearts and minds of Filipinos. We, the erstwhile youthful pioneers of that exciting era, are thankful to have been part of the driving force behind this success.
“And now almost 40 years later and with drastic challenges that beset the Network, we returned to our old playground, to walk one last time the halls and areas which witnessed our laughter and tears and the string of emotions in between. It was time to say goodbye to the towering transmitter that carried our shows and stories across the land, to bid adieu to the studios where we held the original telecasts of ‘TV Patrol,’ ‘Ryan Ryan Musikahan,’ ‘Palibhasa Lalake,’ ‘Teysi ng Tahanan,’ ‘Bahay Kalinga’ and so many other loved shows of yesteryears. It was a bittersweet day for us to sit in the Dolphy Theater and recall all the specials that were held in that historic auditorium and the countless funny stories both on-cam and off-stage that have been seared into our collective memories.
“I will be forever grateful for those precious years in ABS-CBN when I discovered talents I was not aware of and developed skills that would propel my career ahead. I will always be thankful for the experience because it has also shaped me into what I am today. And even if a major portion of the old ABS-CBN grounds will soon be gone and redeveloped, this place and the lifelong friendships I made here will always hold a special place in my heart.”