 |
| DAR Eastern Visayas complies with the President's directive following the presentation of Certificates of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) to former rebels on March 17. Photo: DAR-8 |
TACLOBAN CITY – "Mission accomplished!" exclaimed by employees of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) after President Rodrigo Duterte finally handed over Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CLOAs) to former rebel leaders on March 17, in support of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
Robert Anthony Yu, regional director of DAR Eastern Visayas, disclosed that the chief executive handed over 446 individual CLOA covering 89 hectares of land in Sitio Limite, Brgy. Daja Daku in San Isidro, Leyte, to the 446 Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries (ARBs) during the inauguration of the new Leyte Provincial Capitol in Palo, Leyte.
258 of the 446 ARBs are former insurgents, while 188 are actual farmers, Yu added.
On January 23, 2020, during his visit to the remote San Isidro town to hand over various government assistance to former rebels, the President directed former DAR Secretary, John Castriciones, to provide former rebels with farmland to till under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), so they can begin their livelihood.
A collective CLOA covering 91.6 hectares was generated and registered at the Registry of Deeds one year and eight months later.
Following that, on March 19, this year, the collective CLOA was divided into individual CLOAs, which the President distributed on March 17.
On the same occasion, the President handed 326 more CLOAs totaling 487.7 hectares to representatives of ARBs from different Leyte municipalities and from Northern Samar, Samar, and Southern Leyte provinces.
Agrarian Reform Secretary Bernie Cruz commended the DAR Leyte employees for a job well done.
Cruz paid a visit to the DAR Leyte Provincial Office the day before the distribution to ensure that the titles were in order. —Tacloban News Update (Source: JALS/DAR-8)