THE Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) has installed 13 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Escalante City recently.
The landholding formerly owned by Joffre dela Paz and Gloria dela Paz has a total area of 4.9608 hectares located at Barangay Magsaysay in the northern Negros Occidental locality.
Municipal Agrarian Reform Program Officer Maritess , who spoke at the activity, said there’s always a time to reap and a time to sow.
“Today, you reap the harvest of your hard work and with the aid of the DAR services, we are happy to recognize the new owners of this land,” she told the farmer-beneficiaries.
Following the installation rites, layout and monumenting survey activities were conducted to appropriately mark and indicate the technical descriptions of the lot specified at their certificate of land ownership awards (Cloas).
With the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic still prevailing, the activity has complied with minimum health protocols set by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Department of Health, the agency said.
It said that the activity is under the process of land acquisition and distribution (LAD) of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms (Carper).
Under which, public and private agricultural landholdings are acquired by the government to be distributed to tenants, farmers, farmworkers and other tillers who are qualified to become ARBs.
This is in the form of Cloas covering one contiguous tract or several parcels of land cumulated up to a maximum of three hectares per ARB.
The DAR said it aims to provide lands to landless farmers and farmworkers, guarantee the farmers' land security, deliver social equity, and provide them with the necessary productive resources needed to ensure their economic viability and productivity.
It is the lead government agency that holds and implements comprehensive and genuine agrarian reform which actualizes equitable land distribution, ownership, agricultural productivity, and tenurial security for, of, and with the tillers of the land towards the improvement of their quality of life, it added.
Meanwhile, 65 applicants participated in the final interview conducted by DAR-Negros Occidental I at its conference room in Bacolod City earlier this month.
Two applicants vied for the assistant statistician position, 37 for three vacant positions as Agrarian Reform Program Technologist, 23 for two Municipal Agrarian Reform Program Officer vacant positions, and three for one position as Attorney V.
“Choosing the best among the many is one of our top priorities as the DAR continues to uphold excellence and quality service to Filipinos,” the agency also said. (With PR)