Over 5,000 farmers from Eastern Visayas receive land titles from PBBM
Five-thousand ninety-six (5,096) agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs), from Eastern Visayas became landowners as they received Certificates of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) and electronic titles (e titles) from President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. and Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Conrado M. Estrella III in a ceremony held at the Tacloban City Convention Center, Tacloban City, Leyte on May 20, 2024.
A total of 5,438 titles covering 7,913 hectares of land located in the municipalities of Leyte/Biliran, Southern Leyte, Western Samar, Eastern Samar, and Northern Samar were distributed, including 5,400 e titles under the Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling Project (Project SPLIT) and 38 CLOAs under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
“We know that farmers wish to own the land they are tilling for many years, I will assure you that the land distribution will be completed by the next four years,” the President said in his keynote remarks.
Marcos said that the mandate of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) does not end with land distribution as the agency will provide support services to the ARBs to enable them to maximize the productivity of their lands and improve the quality of their lives.
Five-hundred nine million, four-hundred fifty thousand worth of support services were also turned over to the ARBs, including farm-to-market roads in Southern Leyte, Leyte, and Northern Samar, Pang-Agraryong Tulay para sa Bagong Bayanihan ng mga Magsasaka Bridges (PBBM Bridges) in Samar, Eastern Samar, and Southern Leyte, irrigation projects in Biliran, Northern Samar, and Southern Leyte, and farm machineries and equipment.
DAR Secretary Estrella acknowledged the presence of several ARBs who were among the oldest who finally received their land titles after years of waiting: Emiliano Melendres Sacate, 93 years old from Northern Samar; Juanito Dumanhug, 84 years old from Southern Leyte; Pablo Cajepe, 72 yrs old from Leyte; and Fedil Cabanganga, 70 yrs old from Samar.
“The farmers have been waiting for a long time—now they finally receive their land titles,” Estrella
said.
