Ninety-seven percent of the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) covered by a survey conducted by the Negros Occidental provincial government claimed they had not received government support services and 70 percent said they have had no economic gains.

The executive summary of a study commissioned by the Negros Occidental provincial government on the actual status of CARP implementation in Negros Occidental from 1989 to 2007, and the beneficiaries perception on their economic gains and social benefits, was released yesterday by Jose Ma. Valencia, chief of staff of Gov. Joseph Marañon.

The study recommended that the government prioritize extensive support services to ARBs, focus on coverage of lands under the Voluntary Offer to Sell program and impose a moratorium on compulsory acquisition.

The Department of Agrarian Reform should also hasten individual titling of mother Certificate of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) and land tax collection, and improve data banking of beneficiaries to prevent multiple issuances of CLOAs to the same person, the study said.

Agrarian Reform Communities must be strengthened and land reform should not be relegated to the DAR alone but should be carried out in coordination with other government agencies, particularly local government units and the private sector, the study added.

The study said DAR records show that 111,830 homelots were distributed in Negros Occidental. However, validation of the listing showed that only 78,470 ARBs on actual census benefited, the study added.

MULTIPLE CLOAS

The study also discovered that a substantial number of ARBs were named in multiple CLOAs, pointing out that in Cadiz City one beneficiary’s name appeared in 19 CLOAs issued by DAR.

More than 61 percent of the ARBs are still covered under mother CLOAs and have yet to receive their individual lot titles, the study said.

Also alarming, the study, said is that 15 percent of the ARBs have been awarded lots but are not holding any CLOAs, two percent were given CLOAs but were not given lots, while three percent had no CLOAs and lots.

On the average each beneficiary was awarded 1.38 hectares of land, and since most of the ARBs were former sugar plantation workers, 54 percent of the awarded lands continued to be planted to sugar crops, the study said.

The study also said only 59 percent of the ARBs are actually tilling the land awarded to them while 41 percent are not.

NO RESOURCES

The lack of resources to maintain the capital-intensive sugarcane lands and the length of the sugar cropping period are some of the reasons that force the ARBs to either mortgage, lease or put their lots under financing schemes, usually to former landowners, the study said.

This set up has perpetrated the tenancy relationship, the eradication of which was the original purpose of land reform, the study added.

The study also showed that the  average income per year  of an ARB, with an average of five dependents,  is P18,285.23, much lower than the annual income of a sugar worker  of P52,000 based on the minimum daily wage of P203, not counting benefits they get from the social amelioration fund.

The study said 80 percent of the respondent ARBs believe that they have not increased their productivity because of lack of technical support.

UNPAID TAXES

Barely 30 percent of the ARBs pay their land taxes and amortizations because of low income and lack of individual titles, the study said.

As of September 2007 records at the Office of the Provincial Assessor showed P2.48 billion in real property collectibles from agrarian reform covered properties in Negros Occidental, the study said.

As a result the delivery of basic services  by local government units have been affected,  particularly in  education, since 50 percent of the real property tax collected  is intended for the Special Education Fund, or a loss of P1.2 billion, the study added.

There is a high probability of land disposition among ARBs awarded with as many as 10 CLOAs as this was found to be  beyond their manageability and capacity to sustain productivity, the study said.

It was also noted that there is a high percentage of land disposition either by mortgage, lease or rights sold of farm lots in Bacolod City.

ARBs that fall under the joint venture agreement or labor employee partnership manifested security in terms of economic sustainability compared to the beneficiaries who were left on their own to till the lots, the study also said.

The study said after 18 years of CARP implementation in Negros Occidental, the program has fallen short of its goals because while land distribution was fairly high, this was not translated into economic gains and social benefits for the beneficiaries.

The Negros Occidental provincial government has furnished Congress copies of the study in aid of legislation, with the CARP, set to end this year, now under review, Valencia said.

A copy of the study was also furnished the president.

DAR: FIGURES TOO HIGH

Meanwhile, Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer Teresita Depenso said in fairness to the CARP, they are asking the Negros Occidental provincial government to provide them with the instruments used in the conduct of its study to determine if its results are scientifically-backed or just sweeping statements.

While the Capitol study said 97 percent of the ARBs surveyed claimed they had not received support services, Depeñoso said the figure was too high.

She said 72 to 80 percent of the beneficiaries within the DAR agrarian reform communities had received support services.*CPG

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