Law writing off P58B land reform debts a ‘second chance’ for farmers —DAR exec

The recently signed law which wrote off about P58 billion in land-related debts will ease the financial burden of farmers, putting them in a better position to earn more from the lands they till, an official of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) said.

At the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City, DAR Undersecretary Luis Pangulayan said the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday, is seen as a “second chance” for farmers.

“It’s a second chance for the farmers to improve their lives now that they are in a better position, wala nang drag ‘yung utang,” Pangulayan said.

The new law, or Republic Act No. 11953, will benefit 610,054 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) as it writes off P57.557 billion of their loans.

These farmers were tilling a total of 1,173,101.57 hectares of agrarian reform lands.

Under the new law, the DAR shall move for the dismissal of all actions pending with the courts relating to the collection of unpaid principal and interests over agricultural lands covered by agrarian reform laws.

The government would assume the obligations of 10,201 agrarian reform beneficiaries who are tilling 11,531.24 hectares of land.

The government will also pay the remaining balance of the direct compensation due the landowners under the Voluntary Land Transfer (VLT) or the Direct Payment Scheme (DPS) amounting to P206,247,776.41.

The new law states that the land awarded to agrarian reform beneficiaries would be excluded from gross estate for purposes of estate taxes.

Agrarian reform beneficiaries shall refer to farmers or farmworkers who were granted lands under Presidential Decree No. 27, Republic Act No. 6657, as amended, and Republic Act No. 9700, and who have outstanding loan balances payable to the Land Bank of the Philippines and to private landowners as of the effectivity of the Act.

Pangulayan said that the new law strengthens what the Constitution states in its Article 13, Section 4 that “the State shall, by law, undertake an agrarian reform program founded on the right of farmers and regular farmworkers who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till or, in the case of other farmworkers, to receive a just share of the fruits thereof.”

“Kinikilla po ng administrasyon ni Pangulong Marcos at Secretary Conrad Estrella… na let us be more faithful to the agrarian reform mandate na tanggalin na itong installment payment scheme,” the DAR official said.

Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, the chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations expressed support for the condonation measure.

"By condoning the debts of our farmers, the New Agrarian Emancipation Act provides them with a fresh start and the opportunity to improve their livelihoods," Co said.

"It is a positive move from the government to support and uplift our agricultural sector,” he added.

Co supported in the House of Representatives the landmark law, which also provides support services and credit facilities for farmers.

“The Marcos administration has significantly bolstered the resources available to farmers,” Co said. “These resources will enable farmers to enhance the productivity of their farms and improve their quality of life.”

In his speech during the signing of the law, Marcos mentioned that it was the dream of his father, the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., to give Filipino farmers a better life.

"Let us work together to realize this dream — our dream, as it was my father's dream — to give every Filipino farmer and his or her family, a life beyond mere survival; a life free from want, from hunger, or fear of the future; a life of dignity, abundance and prosperity," he said. —VAL, GMA Integrated News