Land reform beneficiaries brave the rain at a rally in front of the municipal hall of Sariaya, Quezon province, to press for a repeal of what they said was an antiland reform zoning ordinance. PHOTO FROM SARIAYA LGU FACEBOOK PAGE
SARIAYA, Quezon—Land reform beneficiaries in this town are in danger of losing their lands, no thanks to a 33-year-old zoning ordinance that landowners are using to claim their former property.
Romeo Clavo, head of group Ugnayan ng Magsasaka sa Gitnang Quezon (Ugnayan), said a 1982 municipal zoning plan reclassified most farmlands in the town as “nonagricultural,” placing these outside the coverage of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
He said 10 holders of Certificates of Land Ownership Award (Cloa) in a 19.3-hectare farmland in Barangay Bignay 1 have become the latest victims of the 1982 ordinance after Malacañang, on Feb. 13, revoked their Cloa when it favored the Ellice Agro-Industrial Corp., represented by Raul Gala, a member of a landed clan in Sariaya.
Clavo said the Cloa holders had filed a motion for reconsideration, hoping that Malacañang would reverse its decision.
The Cloa of land reform beneficiaries in these areas were also revoked: Cabuñag estate in the villages of Tumbaga 1 and 2, covering 44 ha; Gala estate in Barangay Sampaloc, 260 ha; and Tantuco estate in Barangay Sampaloc 2, 10 ha.
Clavo said they have been asking the town council to repeal the ordinance but “our pleas have fallen on deaf ears.”
He said 750 Cloa, covering 1,750 ha, have pending cases of revocation initiated by landowners. He said, however, that Malacañang had decided in favor of land reform beneficiaries in a case involving 461 ha of the 1,750 ha with pending cases.
But Clavo said beneficiaries feared that their victory in the case of the 461 ha would also be reversed due to the appeal of landowners.
On Monday, at least 500 land reform beneficiaries pitched camp in front of the town hall to press the local government to repeal the 1982 zoning ordinance.
Clavo said they would continue with the protest until the town council heeds their appeal.
Anacoreta Cadacio, daughter of land reform beneficiary Ciriaco Manalo, said the 4 ha awarded by the government to her late father in 1994 have been planted with coconuts and fruit-bearing trees.
She said through hard work, her father was able to send them to school. “He really worked hard to make the land productive because he considers it already his own,” Cadacio said.
On Monday, Sariaya Mayor Rosauro Masilang met with the protesters and showed copies of his letters to the Sangguniang Bayan seeking the repeal of the zoning ordinance. Masilang’s request, however, has yet to be acted upon by the council.
Councilor Minerva Remo, chair of the council’s land use and planning committee, said the council is studying a draft of a new zoning ordinance and asked the farmers for time.
She dismissed reports that the councilors have been influenced by landowners, saying she has always stood for what is best for her town mates. “And that will last until my last day in office,” said Remo, who is serving her last term.
Clavo said Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes, during a Sept. 11, 2013 dialogue, promised Ugnayan members that the Department of Agrarian Reform would return all canceled Cloa once the local government nullifies the zoning ordinance and reclassifies the affected lands as agricultural.