PARAÑAQUE 1st District Rep. Eric Olivares batted for a measure that will mandate television networks to air educational programs for at least 50 hours a year.

In House Bill 9258 or the proposed Educational Television Shows Act of 2021, Olivarez said that there is a need to re-awaken the people’s thirst for knowledge and passion for learning.

“The only way to do this is to educate as many people as we can through every means, channel or platform available to them,” Olivarez said in his explanatory note.

In the Philippines, he explained, television has been the main source of entertainment, especially for the general masses. This makes television an effective platform to deliver education to the people.

“We believe that television is a very powerful tool for education if it chooses to be so,” Olivarez stressed.

House Bill 9258 mandates the regular airing of educational programs in all television networks operating under the Philippine laws.

Under the measure, the National Telecommunications Commission shall develop a system to monitor the compliance of television networks. The NTC shall also review and determine whether a television show can be classified or not as purely educational program.

All television networks are also mandated to make an annual reporting on their respective compliance and submit a list of educational television programs to the NTC.

Any television network that will fail to air a regular program of educational content will pay a penalty of P1 million.