DIGOS CITY, Davao del Sur, Oct. 17 – “CARP is not a sunsetting program,” said Department of Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio delos Reyes during a recent nationwide gathering of the agency’s information officers.
Delos Reyes supported his statement saying that “there is nothing in the law that states that DAR cannot distribute CARP-covered agricultural lands beyond 2014.”
The DAR official also cited Section 30 of Republic Act 9700 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extending the Acquisition and Distribution of Agricultural Lands (CARPER), that states that distribution of land with pending cases/proceedings will continue beyond 2014.
Delos Reyes said these valid grounds that CARP must be continued were confirmed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in its Opinion No. 59 of 2013.
“The truth about agrarian reform in the past four decades was that 60% of the distributed lands were those that were easier, less tedious and less contentious to distribute,” the Secretary stated.
“Contrast that to the nature of lands that are left for distribution from 2013 to 2016 of which 501,718 out of 822,488 hectares or 61% are under mandatory /compulsory acquisition, and where aggregate landholdings above five hectares will now be placed under the coverage of CARP, one can expect a radically different and a very, very contentious part of land acquisition and distribution,” he said.
“A lot of problems will arise along the way and we can get killed in the process but we have to do our job,” he added.
Delos Reyes urged the DAR information officers to make bold steps in “educating the public on agrarian reform and allow discussions on social justice and small holder farming.”
The Cabinet Secretary was keynote guest during the Radio Broadcasting, Crisis PR Seminar/Workshop and Public Assistance and Media Relations Service (PAMRS) Orientation for DAR information officers last week of September this year at the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) in Tagaytay.
He further enjoined the information officers to showcase and present the many success stories that are happening in the Agrarian Reform Communities (ARCs) while ensuring utmost ”transparency and accountability” from among the employees.
Meanwhile, Delos Reyes bared that the distribution of Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac will be held in a series of programs in the first two weeks of October, expecting skeptical views and statements of disbelief from detractors.
Hacienda Luisita has a total of 6,884 lots with an equal area of 6,600 square meters each for the 6,212 identified Farm Worker Beneficiaries spread across ten barangays in the municipalities of Concepcion and La Paz and in Tarlac City, all of Tarlac Province. (DAR-Davao del Sur/Yadz Geyrozaga/PIA-XI, CLC)
No comments:
Post a Comment