Vice President Sara Duterte (left) talks with Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella and Senator Imee Marcos (right) during the region-wide distribution of e-titles and CLOAs to farmer-beneficiaries at the F.L.Dy Coliseum in Cauayan City on Wednesday, April 17. (Photo by Villamor Visaya Jr.)
CAUAYAN CITY — At least 1,117 electronic land titles and certificates of land ownership were given to 901 farmers in the Cagayan Valley region, while 80 farm machines and equipment worth P23.64 million were distributed to 3,105 agrarian reform beneficiaries in a region-wide mass distribution held here on Wednesday, April 17.
The land titles were given to agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARB) and were generated under the Department of Agrarian Reform’s (DAR) Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) project and new land titles.
The new land areas cover 652.6-hectare farms, while the SPLI project lands have 763.7-ha farms. The ARBs received land titles covering an aggregate area of 1,416.34 ha of agricultural lands.
Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella said the region-wide distribution was part of the government’s land tenure security program for landless farmers through land acquisition and distribution, and to implement and deliver support services to agrarian reform beneficiaries, which include the construction of infrastructure facilities and farm-to-market roads.
READ: 670 Isabela farmers get land titles from DAR
He noted that the parcelization of the collective certificates of land ownership award (CLOA) and the issuance of individual titles would allow the beneficiary to have his designated lot and would improve land tenure security and strengthen property rights, while the local government would have an increased collection of real property tax.
Sen. Imee Marcos, who also graced the occasion, pledged to help farmers as she filed in the Senate a bill that would emancipate ARBs from the existing debt burden grant of agricultural lands under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.
President Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 4 directing a one-year moratorium on the payment of the principal obligation and the annual interest due and payable by an ARB on Sept. 13 last year.
Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio, who was the guest speaker, said the distribution of land titles would help farmers, but would be enhanced if peace and prosperity through business and other income-generating activities were achieved. INQ