The Philippine government’s chief lawyer asked the Supreme Court on Monday to shut down the country’s largest TV network by revoking its operating franchises because of alleged constitutional violations, in a move critics called an attempt to muzzle the media. President Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly attacked ABS-CBN Corp., along with at least two other news agencies, for making critical reports about him, including his crackdown on illegal drugs that has left thousands of mostly poor drug suspects dead. Solicitor-General Jose Calida said he filed the petition against the TV network and its subsidiary, ABS-CBN Convergence Inc., for abusing its franchises and violating a constitutional prohibition on foreign investment in Philippine media.
