ABS-CBN supporters hold a vigil by the broadcaster's front entrance. Photo: Wildredo Caay/Carmelo Dado/CNN PH o ABS-CBN has now become the "history" channel. What looked like a sure-fire win in the Lower House for the broadcast giant a day before the vote, turned into a stinging 70-11 defeat. The vast majority of House legislative franchises committee members seem to have commiserated with President Rodrigo Duterte and felt his "pain" at being so unfairly treated by ABS-CBN. Those legislators could not "in good conscience" allow the network to continue operating in the country. In so doing, our Congressmen made it crystal clear, not just to the Lopezes but also to all the so-called titans of industry and everyday Filipinos, that if you elicit the ire of Malacañang, you do so at your peril. From Malacañang's perspective, the country is now more united. Disparate or dissenting views are quickly becoming a thing of the past. More and more, we march in lockstep to the drumbeat of the palace by the Pasig. And as far as that palace is concerned, that's a good thing. With those holding contrarian views increasingly marginalized, sidelined, shut down, or locked up, only a single point of view appears to be taking hold. That is good news to Malacañang, especially since that point of view aligns perfectly with its own. Filipinos have been down this path before during the 1970s and 1980s. Sadly things did not turn out well for those in power then—or did they? But in the end, we all make choices based on what we think is right. Therefore, the legislators who voted against ABS-CBN must have felt that its closure was best for the country. You and I might argue one way or the other, but the final judge will be the passage of time. Only time will tell whether what they did was right. Published 7/11/2020