Negros Occidental agrarian reform committee calls for review of CARP

BACOLOD CITY — The Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee of Negros Occidental has joined the call of various sectors for a review of the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) in the province.

Eduardo Padroña, who chairs the committee, said that while CARP has alleviated the lives of farmer-beneficiaries, a significant number have failed because of lack of support services and capital to sustain the productivity of their lands.

The committee just concluded its assessment of CARP implementation in the province in preparation for the congress of provincial agrarian reform committees in Iloilo City next week.

Padroña, who represents the agri-cooperative sector in the committee, said the program could not fully take off due to the delay in the release of payments to landowners, who had voluntarily sold their landholdings for CARP coverage, among other reasons.

He noted that landowners have been reluctant about CARP coverage mainly due to the land valuation and the selection of beneficiaries, which have resulted in peace and order problems.

Most of the pending agrarian reform cases also involve issues on just compensation and beneficiary selection, he said.

Padroña said their committee has recommended the suspension of the compulsory acquisition scheme and concentrating CARP coverage instead on the voluntary-offer-to-sell option.

"Those lands have sentimental value to the landowners yet they decided to offer them to the government for coverage. It is just fair that they are properly and expeditiously compensated," he said.

The government, according to Padroña, should also ensure that agrarian reform beneficiaries are supported through programs that would sustain their productivity.

Many farmers were forced to lease out their lands because they cannot afford the capital requirements, said James Araneta, the landowners’ representative in the committee.

Padroña said this has negated the real intent of CARP, which is to give lands to the landless.

Gov. Joseph Marañon reiterated his earlier call for an audit of the CARP implementation in the province, saying a study should be conducted to determine if the beneficiaries still till the land given them and if the program has alleviated their lives.

He said CARP can only succeed if adequate support is extended to the beneficiaries.

Marañon added that agrarian reform beneficiaries should amortize their lands with the Land Bank of the Philippines and pay taxes so that other farmers could benefit from the program.