P-Noy urged: Extend CARP land distribution deadline
>> Monday, April 7, 2014
By Aiza Liza P. Namingit
Rep. Teddy Brawner Baguilat, as
chairperson of the House Committee on Agrarian Reform, urged President Noynoy
Aquino to act swiftly to ensure that the remaining private agricultural lands
targeted under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) are issued
Notices of Coverage (NOC) before its prescribed deadline on June 30, 2014
under CARP extension with reforms law.
“I issue
this appeal to MalacaƱang to certify as urgent a bill to continue the issuance
of NOCs for some 260,000 hectares of land still to be covered by the agrarian
reform program beyond June 30, 2014. Other members of the House are also
preparing a bill for filing next week,” stressed Baguilat.
Aside from
these lands, Baguilat also believes that by moving the deadline of NOC
issuance, other private and government lands not yet targeted by DAR but are
qualified to be covered under CARP could be included for coverage to complete
the constitutional mandate for agrarian reform.
Baguilat’s
appeal comes from frustration with the Department of Agrarian Reform’s (DAR)
continued failure to submit its proposed amendment to Section 30 of R.A. 9700
to give the agency more time to completely issue all Notices of Coverage (NOC).
“DAR, it
seems, has no sense of urgency to complete the agrarian reform program. I am
having serious reservations about DAR’s plans on how to fulfill its
Constitutional mandate for agrarian reform,” said Baguilat.
“I urge
the President to compel the DAR to act now and exercise all possible means to
guarantee the completion of the agrarian reform program. I sincerely hope that
PNoy will extend his political will to fulfill the goal of CARP, which is an
unfulfilled legacy of his mother, the late President Cory Aquino’s
administration,” pressed Baguilat.
Baguilat
issued the directive to the DAR at the hearing of the AR Committee last March
5, to submit a “1-liner amendment” that would extend the issuance of NOCs
beyond June 30, 2014, as prescribed in the CARP extension with reforms
(CARPER) law.
The agency
itself recommended this proposal. At the hearing four weeks ago, DAR
Undersecretary Anthony Parungao said that with less than four months before the
prescribed deadline for the land acquisition and distribution (LAD) component
under RA 9700, his department needs more time to issue NOCs that are still
undistributed. This is due to numerous problematic and missing land titles
which are needed for NOC issuance.
Baguilat
and Rep. Cres Paez of Coop NATCCO partylist both insist that the legislative
proposal needs to be filed or deliberated soon because Congress has barely one
month left to deliberate before the June 30, 2014 LAD deadline.
Congress resumes on May 4 and adjourns again on June 15.
"It
is thus most imperative for Malacanang certify this measure as urgent as soon
as possible," urged Baguilat.
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