DAR says Aquino gov't is firm in pushing for agrarian reform

By Jose Rafael Cesar Atencio

Wednesday 6th of June 2012

QUEZON CITY, June 6 (PIA) -- The country’s Agrarian reform under the Aquino Administration is proceeding swiftly despite the huge challenges facing the program.

Agarian Reform Secretary Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes said in a press release that during President Benigno Simeon Aquino III’s first two years, DAR managed to acquire and distribute some 219,069 hectares of land throughout the country.

Delos Reyes said though this is not exemplary, this is by no means the lowest accomplishment in the history of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

The lowest recorded was 59,495 hectares of land distributed in 2009 because of the uncertainties brought about by the transition to RA 9700. The second lowest was 97,795 hectares recorded in 2003.

Last year alone, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) distributed 111,889 hectares of land nationwide, which is slightly higher than the 107,180 hectares distributed in 2010. DAR completed the acquisition of 18,414 landholdings with a total area of 120,286 hectares for a gross accomplishment rate of 60 %.

Of this area, 8,397 hectares are exclusions from the same landholding and retention areas of landowners. Thus 111,889 hectares were actually distributed to 63,755 agrarian reform beneficiaries.

The total area that is still to be distributed (called the Land Acquisition and Distribution or LAD balance) totals 961,974 hectares from 107,639 landholdings.

Around 93.58 % of the LAD balance (900,188 hectares) are private agricultural land; almost 85 % of the LAD Balance (816,491 hectares) are LBP-compensable.

The large portion of previous accomplishments are acquisitions that are “easy”: government-owned lands, voluntary land transfers, and voluntary offer to sell.

These are the less tedious and less contentious to distribute. Today, however, 62 % (596,036 hectares) of the LAD balance will be covered through compulsory acquisition (CA). Therein lies the challenge.

Moreover, the LAD Balance has to be distributed according to the schedule by Phase as mandated by RA 9700.

Phase 3B lands constitute 187,959 hectares of the LAD balance. This can only be covered from July 2013 to June 2014. Phase 3A lands which can only be covered from July 2012 to June 2013 totals 217,639 hectares.

But, only Phase 3A lands in excess of 10 hectares can be covered during this period. This means that 163,660 hectares of Phase 3A lands can only be covered from July 2013 to June 2014. Thus 351,619 hectares of the LAD balance (37%) can only be covered in the last year (July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014) of CARPER.

This leaves only 610,355 hectares of the LAD balance that can be covered from now until June 2013. Of this total hectarage, 13,553 hectares are for reconstitution, 30,984 hectares are untitled private agricultural lands and 179,826 hectares are problematic landholdings (with cases, with defective titles or technical descriptions, etc.)

Note also that as per CARPER provision, Phase 3B lands cannot be covered unless 90 % of the provincial LAD balance had been accomplished. This is a problem in a number of provinces where the Phase 3B balance is more than 10% of the provincial LAD balance. (DAR/RJB/JRCA-PIA NCR)