Palace: Draft EO on land conversion ban nears approval

MALACAÑANG is still reviewing the draft executive order (EO) declaring a two-year moratorium for conversion of agricultural lands but is expected to release a copy of it soon.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella made the statement, barely five months after President Rodrigo Duterte held a meeting with the Presidential Agrarian Reform Council (PARC).

The PARC is tasked to work on an EO that will place a moratorium on the processing and approval of all applications for all land-use conversion of agricultural lands for non-agricultural uses.

Abella, in a press conference, said the fourth version of the draft EO had already been submitted to the Office of Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea for final review.

“The fourth version is already with [Medialdea]. And that is under study and should come out soon,” he said.

Agrarian Reform Secretary Rafael Mariano had said the EO will be applied to all awarded lands under Republic Act 6657, Presidential Decree 27, and other agriculture reform laws.

Agricultural lands with notices of coverage issued by the Department of Agrarian Reform, irrigated and irrigable lands, prime agricultural lands, retention areas of the land owners which are tenanted, and agricultural lands with presence of agricultural activities that are being cultivated by the farmers individually or collectively are also covered in the EO implementation.

Under the proposed EO, a task force will be created to assess the status of land use conversion in the country, and will also give DAR the power to call upon the support of other implementing agencies. (SunStar Philippines)

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