230 CALABARZON farmers receive land titles from DAR

TALISAY, Batangas — A total of 230 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) here received 267 combined individual and electronic land titles (e-titles) and certificates of land ownership award from the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) covering a total area of 241.8 hectares of agricultural land located in Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon 1, and Quezon II.

Atty. Luis Meinrado Pañgulayan, DAR Undersecretary for Policy, Planning and Research Office, who led the distribution of land titles, said 186 e-titles were issued to 157 ARBs under the agency’s Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling or Project SPLIT.

“The 157 ARBs under the Project SPLIT were previously awarded lands under collective certificates of land ownership award (CCLOAs). This time, they were given individual e-titles after the department went through the process of subdividing the CCLOAs,” Pañgulayan said.

The Project SPLIT aims to strengthen the ARB’s land tenure security and property rights to their lands.

The remaining 81 CLOAs were issued under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) and distributed to 73 ARBs.

At the distribution of land titles, Pañgulayan announced the enactment into law of Republic Act 11953, or the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, which will free the ARBs from the financial burden of paying loans extended in relation to awarded agricultural lands under CARP.

“Last July 7, RA 11953 was signed by the President in Malacañang. ARBs like you who have yet to be awarded agricultural lands from the CARP will receive so without any obligation for amortization,” Pangulayan explained.

According to Pañgulayan, the New Agrarian Emancipation Act will also exempt tax payments on awarded lands to ARBs.

Corazon Necafort, 72 years old from Rosario, Batangas, was very grateful for her CLOA from the DAR.

“l could not contain my happiness upon receiving the CLOA. And with the signing of the new law, we will not be paying amortization for this land. I am grateful to President Bongbong and the DAR for their commitment to serving the ARBs. We have been excitedly waiting for this and now it is already in our hands,” Necafort said.

She also said her family would really treasure the land and plant more cash crops for their daily sustenance.