Your land reform primer

Title

Language

English

Source

The Republic Volume I (Issue No.16) 16-31 August 1976

Year

1976

Subject

Land reform -- Philippines

Philippines -- Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR)

Estrella, Conrado

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

[This article contains an interview with DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella, discussing topics on land transfer, land valuation, and more.]

Fulltext

12 16-31 August 1976 The Government THE REPUBLIC Your land reform primer What is “Operation Land Trans fer? “ Operation Land Transfer (OLT) is the orderly and systematic transfer of tenanted rice and corn lands to the tenant-tillers in pursuance of PD No. 27. What are the criteria required be fore a land is covered by Operation Land Transfer? There are four criteria required be fore a land is covered by OLT. The ab sence of one of the criteria exempts the land from coverage. The criteria are: □ The land is private agricultural land; □ The land is tenanted; □ The land is primarily devoted to rice and/or corn; and □ The area of the tenanted land is more than seven hectares. What are the steps taken to transfer the land to tenant-tillers? □ The first step is the identification of the tenants, landowners and the land covered by OLT. □ The second step is to sketch the actual cultivation of the tenants by title. □ The third step is the issuance of the certificate of land transfer (CLT). □ The fourth step is the land val uation of the land covered. □ The final step is the issuance of the Emancipation Patent to the tenant upon compliance with government re quirements. What is the maximum area that can' be transferred to the tenants? The maximum area that a tenant may get under PD 27 is 3 hectares for irrigated rice/corn land and 5 hectares for unirrigated rice/corn land. Under OLT, what is the actual area transferred to the tenant? In order not to cause any social dis~'-^Kfcation and promote conflicts in the rural areas, only the actual cultivation of the tenant is transferred to him pro vided his total landholding does not ex ceed 3 hectares for irrigated and 5 hec tares for unirrigated lands, the maximum area provided by PD 27. In the determination of the area of tenanted rice and/or corn area covered by OLT owned by a landowner, do we cover by parcel or by the aggregate of all parcels? OLT covers the aggregate area of all tenanted parcels owned by a single landowner, not parcel by parcel. For ex ample, a landowner owns three parcels with three separate titles in his name with areas of 5 hectares, 6 hectares and 3 hectares. Inasmuch as the total area of all parcels is 14 hectares, all the par cels are covered by Operation Land Transfer even if each parcel is less than 7 hectares. Can tenanted rice and corn lands inherited before Oct. 21, 1972 be sub divided among the heirs? If a landowner dies before Oct. 21, 1972, all the heirs are supposed to have succeeded in his place and hence they can subdivide the property among them. However,they cannot eject their tenants. Suppose a landowner wants to sub divide his tenanted rice and com lands after Oct. 21, 1972, can he do it? PD No. 27 states that “the tenants are deemed owners of the land they till” as of Oct 21, 1972, the date the PD was issued. Suppose a landowner dies after Oct. 21, 1972, can the heirs subdivide the landholding among themselves? No. After Oct. 21, 1972, the tenants are deemed owners of the land they till hence the heirs of the landowner can not subdivide the land.They can, how ever, divide the proceeds of sale of the land. What is the relation between the tenants and the landowner in the re tained area? The relation between the tenants and the landowner in the retained area is leasehold. The landowner cannot eject the tenants in order that he can till the retained area himself. When is a tenant issued a Certificate of Land Transfer (CLT)? When the tenant has been listed and identified as the actual tiller and his cultivation is sketched by the Bureau of Lands, then the CLT is generated by the National Computer Center (NCC) from the data submitted by the Depart ment of Agrarian Reform (DAR). The CLT generated is registered by the LRC and issued to the tenant-tiller if he is a member of a Samahang Nayon; other wise the CLT is held by DAR until the tenant-tiller becomes a member of an SN. What is a Certificate of Land Trans fer (CLT)? A Certificate of Land Transfer is an evidence that the tenant whose name appears in the CLT has been listed and identified by the DAR and his cultivation has been sketched by the Bureau of Lands. Upon compliance with govern ment requirements he may be issued an emancipation patent. A CLT is not a title, but it can be used as a collateral in getting production loan. Can a farmer who acquired his landhqlding under PD 27 sell his land to anybody? No. Pursuant to PD 27, lands ac quired under PD 27 cannot be sold to anybody except by hereditary’succession or to the government. The farmer can hand it down to his heirs or if there is no heir he can sell it back to the government. Can a farmer who was identified as entitled to a land under PD 27 refuse to accept the land? The farmer who refuses to accept the land under PD 27 may be deprived of the land when a qualified farmer is found who is willing to take over , the land. The farmer who surrendered his right to the land forever loses his right to any land from the government. LAND VALUATION What is the value of the land trans ferred to the tenants in pursuance of PD No. 27? The value of the land transferred to the tenants in pursuance of PD No. 27 is equal to two and one-half times the average normal annual harvest for three normal crop years before October 21. This amount is in cavans of palay 50 kilos net. To convert this value into pesos you multiply the number of ca vans by P35.OO which is the NGA sup port price on Oct. 21, 1972. EXAMPLE: The normal crop years and the corresponding production per hectare for a piece of land is as follows: 1968 — 60 cavans/ha., 1970 — 70 cavans and 1971 - 80 cavans. The average pro duction is 70 cavans. The value of the land is two and one-half times 70 equals 175 cavans per hectare, which is equi valent to 175 x P35 or P6125 per hectare. Can the landowner negotiate with his tenants and agree on the price of the land? Initially, this was allowed, as a gest ure of accommodation to the clamor of some landowners. However, after a series of deadlines, many landowners failed to agree with their tenants so that on March 31,1975, DAR discontinued with this arrangement. Landowners who started to negotiate with their tenants but failed to complete the requirements on March 31, 1975 were allowed to continue the negotiation. In the event that there is no prospect of agreement, the land valuation is done under a new system. What is the new system of land valuation? The new system of land valuation is to have the same price for each land class within a barangay. This means that within the barangay, lands belong ing to the same class will have the same price because it is assumed that they have the same production. Do tenants have to continue to pay their lease rentals even after October 21, 1972? Yes, tenants are to continue paying their lease rentals. However, whatever they pay after Oct. 21, -1972 is con sidered as amortization and hence de ducted from the computed value of the land. How long will the tenants have to pay for the land transferred to them? The tenants are supposed to pay for the land transferred to them in fifteen (15)- equal annual amortization at 6% interest per annum. - How about the landowners, how much are they paid? The tenants are supposed to pay the landowners in fifteen (15) equal annual amortization at 6%. However, due to the clamor of landowners, new modes of payment through the Land Bank have been provided. What are these modes of payment? The modes of payment are provided by the Land Bank. The Land Bank pays the landowner and the tenants pay the Land Bank. The modes of payment are: □ Ten percent cash and 90% bonds for 25 years at 6% per annum, tax-free, payable semi-annually. □ Thirty percent in preferred shares of stock and the balance in 25 years, tax-free 6% per annum Land Bank bonds. □. Land Bank guarantees payment of the 15 equal annual amortization to be paid by the tenant-farmers. □ The small landowner is assured of yearly annuities of pension and insurance. □ Land value could be exchanged for stock in government-owned or con trolled corporation or private corpora tion where the government has holdings. What are the incentives given to small landowners—those owning less than 24 hectares when their lands are covered by OLT? Small landowners, those owning less than 24 hectares, who are covered by the OLT or who would voluntarily sell their lands are given certain special conditions as incentives. These are: □ Small landowners are paid 20% cash and 80%Land Bank bonds, 25 years tax-free at 6% interest per annum. In terest is payable semi-annually. □ Reduction of the present in terest rate from 12% to 10% on loans if he borrows or obtains loans from the Land Bank. □ An additional cash payment of 10% for the education of his children. □ An additional cash payment of not more than 10% for the security of the future of the children such as insurance. □ An additional cash payment of not more than 10% for housing purposes for the family. In all cases the total cash payment to the small landowner cannot be more than 30%. □ Payments are exempt from cap ital gains tax and income tax. What are the uses of the Land Bank bonds? Land Bank bonds may be used for the following: □ Payment for government agri cultural lands; □ Payment for government real properties; □ Payment for shares of stock or assets in government-owned or con trolled corporations; □ Surety, bail bonds for the prov isional release of accused persons; □ Performance bonds where- the government may require or accept real property as bonds; □ Security for loans withrPNB, DBP, GS1S, SSS and other government financial institutions; and □ Payment for reparation goods. RETENTION OPTIONS What is the area of land a land owner may retain under OLT? The area a landowner may retain under certain conditions is about 7 hectares. What are the conditions required before a landowner may retain about 7 hectares? If the landowner owns in addition to his less than 24 and more than 7 hectares of tenanted rice and corn land, other lands planted to other crops with an area of less than 7 hectares or properties with value less than Pl00,000 where he derives income then he may retain about 7 hectares of tenanted rice and com land. However, if the landowner owns other lands planted to other crops with an area of more than 7 hectares or properties worth Pl00,000 or more where he derives an income, then he can not retain a portion of the tenanted rice and com land. Landowners owning 24 hectares or more of tenanted rice and/or corn lands are not entitled to retention. Seven (7) hectares or less of ten anted rice and corn lands are not covered by OLT. Lands without tenants are not cov ered by OLT. What is the relation between the landowner and the tenants in the re tained area? The relation between the landown ers and the tenants in the retained areais leasehold and the leasehold contract must be written. Can the landowner eject the tenants in the retained area so he can cultivate it himself? No. When can the landowner eject the tenants? The landowner can eject the tenants only upon court order if they deliberate ly fail to pay lease rentals for two consecutive crop years. Who selects the area to be retained in case the landowner has the option to retain ? The landowner has the option to choose the area to be retained provided the area must be contiguous parcels cul tivated by tenants of about 7 hectares and parcels cultivated by tenants must not be broken up to complete the 7 hectares. □

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