IS PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte coming to Negros Occidental for the distribution of certificates of land ownership award (Cloas) to the beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program on February 22?
In the past few days, Duterte mentioned in one of his speeches in Mindanao that he will distribute Cloas in Sagay City this week.
When asked for confirmation, Sagay City Mayor Alfredo Marañon III said he has not received any confirmation yet on the President's arrival and that he only heard about it through media reports.
He said, "so far, members of the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) have not yet arrived in the city" as of press time.
The mayor also said that up for Cloa distribution in the city are located in different barangays and that he is coordinating with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) with regard to the official list.
A SunStar Bacolod source said, though, that members of the PMS have already arrived in the province Tuesday, February 19, and they have been going to the sites where the President is set to visit.
On June 20, 2018, Duterte led the ceremonial distribution of emancipation patents and Cloas in Iloilo with the biggest coverage in Negros Occidental with 1,775 in northern Negros Occidental and 938 in southern Negros Occidental.
The distribution of Cloas in Iloilo coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (Carp).
Data earlier obtained by SunStar Bacolod showed that in 30 years of Carp implementation, DAR in Negros Occidental-South has already distributed a total of 115,677 hectares covering 73,635 agrarian reform beneficiaries.
The distributed land in the south forms part of the total 187,677 hectares of Carp areas distributed in Negros Occidental since the program started in 1988.