Emergency Palace meeting on CARP

MANILA, Philippines–President Aquino held an emergency meeting with leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives Thursday morning to ensure the approval of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms (Carper) by June 11 this year.

“We will take it up and approve it (House Bill No. 4296) on third reading before sine die adjournment,” said Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II in a text message.

Gonzales said lawmakers present during the meeting were headed by Senate President Franklin Drilon and Speaker Feliciano Belmonte. Officials of the Department of Agrarian Reform were also present.

The President was acting on a letter sent early this month by 81 members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines who appealed to him to “give new life and a glorious finish” to the 27-year-old agrarian reform program by approving the pending Carper bill in the House (the Senate approved its version a year ago).

The signatories—15 archbishops, 59 bishops and seven Church administrators—described their letter as the “biggest public appeal” so far involving agrarian reform.–Gil Cabacungan