AN OFFICIAL of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Negros Occidental has stressed the importance of commitment among employees as the agency marks the 31st anniversary of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (Carp).
DAR in Negros Occidental - south provincial agrarian reform program officer II Teresita Mabunay, during the anniversary celebration held at Panaad covered court in Bacolod City on Monday, June 17, emphasized the need to uphold the values of being committed and productive in all aspects of the job.
As she congratulated the employees for the work done during the first half of the year, Mabunay urged them to be conscientious in dealings with clients and stakeholders.
“These values, especially commitment, will enable us to attain all the targets for the second half of the year,” she added.
As part of the kick-off activities, officials and employees gathered for a motorcade around the city.
This is their way of recognizing the continuous support of other Carp-implementing agencies as well as non-government organizations (NGOs).
They then joined the thanksgiving mass officiated by Diocese of Bacolod Social Action Center Director Rev. Fr. Chris Gonzales.
During the activity, DAR-Western Visayas director Stephen Leonidas also congratulated the employees for their contribution in the implementation of Carp in the province.
Carp, which started in 1988 during the time of the late President Corazon Aquino, is the redistribution of public and private agricultural lands to farmers and farmworkers who are landless, irrespective of tenurial arrangement.
It is designed for the attainment of a just, safe and equitable society that upholds the rights of tillers to own, control, secure, cultivate and enhance their agricultural lands, and improve their quality of lives towards rural development and national industrialization.
Republic Act No. 6657, or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (Carl), is the legal basis of the program which aims to promote social justice and industrialization, providing the mechanism for its implementation, and for other purposes.
Negros Occidental has the biggest Carp area in the country.
As of 2018, a total of 187,677 hectares of land was already distributed since the program started more than three decades ago.
Other highlights included basketball matches, table tennis and cultural relay games which featured different traditional Filipino games like sack race, limbo, kick, “kadang” and going to the market with a twist.
The Carp anniversary celebration in the province will run until July.
The month-long activities include Carp District Caravans, and employee healthcare and wellness seminar.
Also, there will be an Agrarian Expo at the Ayala Malls Capitol Central on June 24 to 30.