DAR reshuffles agrarian reform executives

CEBU, Philippines - The Department of Agrarian Reform-7 has implemented a reshuffling of Provincial Agrarian Reform Officers (PARO) in its efforts to attain maximum efficiency through its provincial offices in Central Visayas.

In line with the revamp, Cebu agrarian officer Stephen Leonidas will switch position with Negros Oriental agrarian officer Grace Fua.

Siquijor agrarian officer Ma. Lourdes Mariano will be assigned as technical assistant under the regional director’s office. She will be replaced by Maximo Tenorio Jr.

Antonio del Socorro, former chief agrarian reform program officer for support services division, is now the officer in charge of Bohol agrarian office.

The new assistant regional director for administration is lawyer Johnson Sinco. He replaced lawyer Nevino Cardente who had just retired to run for the Provincial Board of Negros Oriental.

DAR-7 information officer Angelina Manubag said that the department is optimistic for the coming years, especially in the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

All efforts are being undertaken to meet the deadline for CARP’s Land Acquisition and Distribution (LAD) in 2014.

In fact, Manubag said DAR is set to conduct the CY 2009 Assessment and CY 2010 Planning Conference from January 21 to 23. At the conference, the DAR secretary is expected issue his operational directives for the 2010 plans and targets.

As of December 2008, DAR has accomplished distribution of 155,423 hectares of land to 115,413 farmer beneficiaries in four provinces of the region.

A total of 74,506 hectares were placed under leasehold, benefiting 99,187 farmers. Last year, DAR-7 has distributed 7,274 hectares to 2,424 farmers.

Under CARP, farmer beneficiaries are granted three hectares which they need to pay depending on the terms provided by the Land Bank of the Philippines.

Manubag said they still have about 51,000 hectares to be distributed under the LAD component of CARP. For 2010, initial target to be distributed in the region will be more or less 10,000 hectares, depending on the order of the DAR main office.

The 10,000 hectares are expected to benefit more than 3,000 farmers. — Jessica Ann R. Pareja/LPM    (FREEMAN NEWS)