More lands owned by First Gentleman up for distribution

More than 250 hectares of agricultural lands in Negros Occidental owned by the family of First Gentleman Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo will be distributed to land reform beneficiaries within the next few months.

Land Reform Secretary Rene Villa said his office was just waiting for Mr. Arroyo to issue a special power of attorney authorization for his younger brother, Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio Arroyo, so that his share in the 157-hectare Hacienda Bacan could be transferred to the government as mandated under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law.

Hacienda Bacan, one of the properties in Negros Occidental placed under land reform, is already being processed for distribution to farmer-beneficiaries, he added.

Villa also denied allegations that the Department of Land Reform (DLR) had not subjected to land reform vast agricultural properties in Negros Occidental, particularly those owned by the Arroyo family.

"We issue this statement not really to defend one family but to correct malicious fabrications against the President," he said.

Villa said contrary to claims in newspaper ads, the DLR has continued to extend support services to farmers in Negros Occidental.

Records at the DLR show the Arroyo family lands had been consistently awarded to land reform beneficiaries since the late 1980s, he added.

Villa said some 870 hectares of land in Negros Occidental formerly owned by the Arroyos had already been distributed to 900 farmer-beneficiaries.

These lands are spread over the towns of Binalbagan, Hinigaran and La Castellana, he added.

Meanwhile, Villa said 15 foreign-assisted projects amounting to P27.866 million were already transforming and modernizing some 896 agrarian reform communities out of 1,697 established nationwide for the first quarter of the year.

A total of 1,589,539 hectares of agricultural lands already acquired and distributed through the comprehensive agrarian reform program have been covered by foreign-funded projects, he added.

Fourteen regions, including the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, have been beneficiaries of these projects in the form of capital or technical assistance, he added.

Villa said the 15 projects are expected to cover a total of 804,445 agrarian reform beneficiaries within the 6,309 barangays nationwide.

"A few years from now, the once sleepy towns and barangays will become vibrant and progressive as a result of this foreign assistance," he said.

Specifically, he mentioned construction of farm-to-market roads, bridges and water systems; provision of solar dryers, lighting systems, harvest facilities and farm implements and equipment; and technical assistance in animal breeding, vegetable and palay production as among the improvements. — Aurea Calica