‘Accelerate completion of agrarian reform coverage’

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – A multi-sectoral group here is asking the national government to accelerate the completion of the agrarian reform coverage.

In a press conference at the Negros Press Club Thursday, the Damayan ng mga Manggagawa, Magsasaka at Mangingisda sa Bansa (DAMMBA) said that the backlog of the Department of Agrarian Reform is still over 464,000 hectares.

“Most of its backlog is in Negros Occidental,” DAMMBA national chairman and president Roy Mahinay said.

He further said that “prolonging the Land Acquisition and Distribution (LAD) is prolonging the agony of the farmers and farm workers and potential agrarian reform beneficiaries.”

Mahinay also lamented that “35 years and six presidents from Corazon Aquino in 1987-1988 to Bongbong Marcos, but the agrarian reform professed by the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law passed on June 15, 1988 has not yet been completed.”

Generally, DAMMBA demands to accelerate the completion of the agrarian reform coverage, to fast track the LAD process, to hasten the resolution of the long pending cases and issues and concerns, and to complete the coverage of all Private Agricultural Lands and Government Own Lands.

Mahinay added that in particular, they are very much concerned about Negros Occidental because the province has the largest coverage backlog.

Mahinay said that it is in Negros Occidental where there is the strongest landowner resistance against land reform and also has the most ejection/demotions of potential agrarian reforms beneficiaries.

He added that the province has also the most farm workers terminated from work due to petitions for coverage and also has many farmers and farm workers killed due to their struggle for land.

The province of Negros Occidental also has the slowest LAD process and the most violations of the agrarian reform law, Mahinay further lamented.