Negros Occidental Gov. Joseph Marañon yesterday said he will submit a report to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on the contentious manner in which the Department of Agrarian Reform installed 57 farmer-beneficiaries in Hacienda Velez-Malaga in La Castellana Thursday, and ask for a thorough review of what is happening in Negros.

He will also ask for DAR coordination with local government officials in the installation of farmer-beneficiaries and for a process to be set up to prevent violence, the governor said. Marañon said a review of the way DAR identifies beneficiaries to ensure that tillers of the land are given their just share is needed to prevent violent reactions from contending parties.

Just compensation should also be paid before Certificates of Land Ownership Award are enforced, he said.

Uneasy calm reigns at Malaga
BY CARLA GOMEZ

The sugarcane field where 57 farmer-beneficiaries were installed in Hacienda Velez-Malaga, La Castellana, amid heavy security Thursday, was empty yesterday.

Life at the farm appeared to have returned to normal but there was an uneasy calm as 26 Regional Mobile Group cops and about 26 Army soldiers remained to keep the peace, Senior Supt. Pedro Merced, 6th RMG commander, said.

There are still some issues that remain unresolved and are the subject to ongoing negotiations, Merced said.

Iggy scores wife's
'lies', gag order out
SAYS HE'S STILL SEEKING RE-ELECTION
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Rep. Ignacio "Iggy" Arroyo Jr. (Neg, Occ., 5th district) yesterday accused his estranged wife of spreading lies against him and his family, while a judge issued a gag order preventing both parties from discussing a pending joint custody case before a Quezon City Regional Trial Court.

The solon also told the DAILY STAR that the developments in his private life will not stop him from running for re-election as congressman of the fifth district of Negros Occidental. "My private life has nothing to do with my commitment to public service," he said.

Yesterday Judge Rosalina Luna Pison of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 107 issued a gag order on the joint custody case that the solon filed against his wife, Alicia "Aleli" Arroyo, former chairperson of the Philippine Stock Exchange, since it involves their 9-year-old child and is pending before a Family Court.