THE Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) has distributed a total of 36, 824 certificates of land ownership award (Cloas) to agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Western Visayas including Negros Occidental.
These titles cover 43, 826 ARBs involving 51,386 hectares of land in all six provinces in the region.
Of the total of emancipation patents distributed, 8,252 and 8,760 are for ARBs in northern and southern Negros Occidental, respectively.
Farmer-beneficiaries in Aklan received 598 Cloas; Antique – 548; Capiz – 7,281; Guimaras – 1,763; and Iloilo – 9,621.
DAR Secretary John Castriciones, who led the distribution held at Boracay Island in Aklan on Thursday, March 12, said the DAR is closely implementing the mandate of President Rodrigo Duterte which is to uplift the lives of all farmers by distributing the lands and provision of support services.
“We have the mandate to recognize the vital role of our farmers for they are our heroes,” Castriciones said, stressing that, without the farmers, it would be impossible for the nation to survive and to achieve economic stability.
The DAR top official also recognized the importance of convergence with other government agencies in order to attain food stability and inclusive growth.
Castriciones also warned ARBs who engage in the illegal selling or leasing of their lots that they would face penalties and will be disqualified as beneficiaries of the government’s Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (Carp).
“There is no reason for you to sell your lands for DAR has bundles of support services to be provided to our ARBs,” Castriciones told the beneficiaries.
He also highlighted the current housing project of the agency known as BALAI Farmers and Farmworkers’ Housing Program.
It is one of the major programs of the DAR aimed at improving the living condition of farmer-beneficiaries in the country.
“This housing program is our comprehensive solution to achieve inclusive growth by uplifting the quality of lives of Carp beneficiaries and their families through the livelihood and educational support that we will provide,” the official added. (With reports from DAR-NegOcc II)