LAND ACQUISITION – one of the modes of achieving Agrarian Reform

A. VOLUNTARY
1. VOLUNTARY OFFER TO SELL (SEC.19, RA6657)
• Reward for voluntariness = additional 5% cash payment
• Documentary requirements (attachments to written offer)
a. Title
b. Tax Declaration
c. Muniments e.g. survey plan

2. VOLUNTARY LAND TRANSFER (SEC. 20, RA6657)

• RA9700 : allowed voluntary land transfer only up to June 30, 2009
• Government did not act as middlemen

B. COMPULSORY (SEC. 16, RA6657)

• Government acts as middlemen
• STEPS:
1. Identification by the DAR of the land, landowner and beneficiary

2. Notice of acquisition is served to LO through:

a. By personal notice/ delivery or by registered mail; and
b. By posting of the notice in a conspicuous place in the barangay hall and
municipal hall where the land is located

3. Reply by the LO within 30 days from receipt of notice

a. ACCEPT
i. LBP pays LO within 30days after LO executes and delivers deed of
transfer ; LO surrenders Certificate of Title and other muniments
(PAYMENT AND POSSESSION)
ii. DAR requests Register of Deeds to issue TCT in the name of the Republic
of the Philippines

b. REJECT or FAILURE TO REPLY

i. DAR determines just compensation thru summary administrative
proceedings
ii. LBP and other interested parties are required to submit evidence within
15 days from receipt of notice (reply)
iii. Resolution (within 30 days after submitted for decision)
iv. LO may accept or reject decision. If LO rejects, he shall bring the matter
to the proper court.
 • DAR AO # 12 s. 1989
MARO, with assistance of Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee (BARC) shall:
1. Update the master list of all agricultural lands covered under CARP
2. Upon identification of lands, prepare a Compulsory Acquisition Case Folder
3. Serve Notice of coverage
4. Submit case folders to PARO

• DAR AO # 09 s. 1990
- Provides for public hearing

• DAR AO # 01 s. 1993
- Field investigation

TWO NOTICES ARE REQUIRED FOR VALIDITY OF IMPLEMENTATION

1. Notice of Coverage (DAR AO #12 s. 1989)
2. Notice of Acquisition (Sec. 16, RA6657)

Opening of a trust account does not constitute payment because the law requires just compensation
to be paid in cash and LBP bonds and not by trust account.

RETENTION RIGHTS (SEC. 6, RA6657)

• LO has the right to retain not more than 5 hectares
EXCEPTIONS:
1. Beneficiaries who exercise rights under PD27 (7ha retention right)
2. Homestead grant beneficiaries – 18ha are granted, however, only 12ha may be owned by
private individuals
3. Expropriation of private lands by LGUs
a. Acquisition of government thru DAR; payment of just compensation
b. Distribution to agrarian reform beneficiaries
c. Expropriation and payment of just compensation to agrarian reform beneficiaries

• Children of LO are entitled to 3 hectares each

- Requisites:
1. At east 15 years old
2. Actually tilling the land or directly managing the farm

• DAR AO 02-2003
- Any person can exercise retention rights
When?
1. Anytime before the receipt of notice of coverage
2. 60days from receipt of notice of coverage
3. Simultaneous with VOS/VLT
- Failure to exercise retention right constitutes waiver of such rights
 • REQUISITES TO EXERCISE RETENTION RIGHTS
1. Land must be private agricultural land
2. Area to be retained must be compact and contiguous
3. Affidavit of list containing the aggregate landholdings in the entire country
4. List of qualified children who could exercise retention
5. List of prospective beneficiaries within the property

• LO has right to choose the area to be retained; LO’s choice prevails

• EFFECTS OF EXERCISE OF RETENTION RIGHTS

A. If not tenanted – no problem
B. If Tenanted
If LO chooses tenanted area, the tenant may choose:
1. To remain as tenant
- Tenant will no longer be a beneficiary of CARP but an agricultural lessee

2. To be a beneficiary in the same or another agricultural land with similae or comparable

features
- May be paid disturbance compensation

Tenant must exercise his option within 1 year from either:

1. Manifestation of LO’s choice
2. Notice from municipal agrarian officer
3. Court order granting LO’s retention rights

JUST COMPENSATION (Sec. 17, RA6657)

• Just compensation – full and fair equivalent of the property taken

• FACTORS IN DETERMINING JUST COMPENSATION (C2ON2SIDE)

1. Current value
2. Cost of acquisition
3. Official assessment by government assessors
4. Nature of the property
5. Nonpayment of taxes or loans from government financing institutions
6. Sworn valuation by owner
7. Income (**may katuloy pa to. Check niyo notes niyo.)
8. Declaration of taxes
9. Economic or social benefits contributed by beneficiary

• PRINCIPLE OF AFFORDABILITY
- what the farmers-beneficiaries can reasonably afford to pay based on what the land can
produce

• Payment of just compensation must be prompt otherwise right to just compensation is violated
 • VALUE OF THE PROPERTY
GR: value at the time of taking
Exception: if there is undue delay of payment, value at the time of payment

• DARAB: conduct a summary administrative proceeding for the preliminary determination of just
compensation in order to determine whether land valuation computations of the LBP are in
accordance with the rules or administrative order.

• Who conducts Preliminary Proceedings of Land Valuation?

1. PARAD – when the initial land valuation of LBP is less than 10million
2. RARAD – when the initial land valuation of LBP is 10million-50million
3. DARAB – when the initial land valuation of LBP is above 50million

If PARAD is not available, RARAD will conduct it notwithstanding the value of the land

• MODES OF PAYMENT (Sec. 18, RA6657)

1. Cash and financial instruments
2. Shares of stock
3. Tax credits
4. LBP bonds

LAND REDISTRIBUTION
BENEFICIARIES
- Must be landless : considered as landless if he owns less than 3 hectares of land

• QUALIFIED BENEFICIARIES (SEC. 22, RA6657)

a. Agricultural lessees and share tenants
b. Regular farmworkers
c. Seasonal farmworkers
d. Other farmworkers
e. Actual tillers or occupants
f. Cooperatives
g. Other persons directly working on the land

• ORDER OF PRIORITY (SEC.22-A, RA6657)

1. Qualified children (3 hectares)
2. Agricultural lessees and share tenants
3. Regular farmworkers
** 2 & 3 receives 3 hectares each, the rest will be to divided to the following
4. Seasonal farmworkers
5. Other farmworkers
6. Actual tillers or occupants
7. Cooperatives
8. Other persons directly working on the land
 Farmer refers to a natural person whose primary livelihood is cultivation of land or the
production of agricultural crops, either by himself, or primarily with the assistance of his
immediate farm household, whether the land is owned by him, or by another person under
a leasehold or share tenancy agreement or arrangement with the owner thereof.

Farmworker is a natural person who renders service for value as an employee or laborer
in an agricultural enterprise or farm regardless of whether his compensation is paid on a
daily, weekly, monthly or "pakyaw" basis. The term includes an individual whose work has
ceased as a consequence of, or in connection with, a pending agrarian dispute and who
has not obtained a substantially equivalent and regular farm employment.

Regular Farmworker is a natural person who is employed on a permanent basis by an

agricultural enterprise or farm.

Seasonal Farmworker is a natural person who is employed on a recurrent, periodic or

intermittent basis by an agricultural enterprise or farm, whether as a permanent or a non-
permanent laborer, such as "dumaan", "sacada", and the like.

• QUALIFICATIONS OF BENEFICIARIES (DAR AO 02-2009)

1. Age : At least 15 years old
2. Residency : barangay where the land is located
3. Citizenship : Filipino
4. Capability : willing, able and equipped with aptitude to cultivate the land and make it
productive

• DISQUALIFICATIONS
1. Sec 22 – those who have sold, disposed of or abandoned their land; negligence or misuse
of land
2. Sec. 23 – those not considered as landless
3. Sec. 26 – those who fail to pay the aggregate amount of 3 annual amortizations

INDEFEASIBILITY OF TITLES
• DAR will issue CLOA only upon full payment of amortization by farmer beneficiary

• CLOA becomes basis for issuance in his name of original or transfer certificate of title

• CLOAs are titles brought under the operation of the Torrens system. Hence, they are conferred with
same indefeasibility and security as provided for by PD1529

• CLOAs and other titles issued under agrarian reform program become indefeasible and imprescriptible
after 1 year from registration with Office of Registry of Deeds
 • GROUNDS FOR CANCELLATION OF CLOAs (FANISM)
1. Failure to pay an aggregate amount of 3 annual amortizations
2. Abandonment of the land
3. Neglect or misuse of land
4. Illegal conversion
5. Sale, transfer or conveyance of the right to use the land within the prohibition period of 10 years
6. Misuse of financial and support services rendered to you as beneficiary

TWO-FOLD JURISDICTION OF DAR

1. EXECUTIVE – primary agency in the implementation, administration and enforcement of all agrarian
reform laws
Ex. Questions about coverage of land in CARP, application of retention rights

2. JUDICIAL – determination of agrarian dispute involving rights and obligations of parties

- DAR adjudicators : PARAD, RARAD, DARAB

2009 DARAB Rules on Procedure

• PARAD – initial jurisdiction
• If PARAD is disqualified or inhibits himself, the RARAD will have jurisdiction
• The decisions of the PARAD and RARAB are appealable to the DARAB
• DARAB decision is appealable (after MR) to the Court of Appeals thru petition for certiorari

• If agrarian dispute is alleged in the complaint and filed in regular court, the court should not
immediately dismiss the case but refer the case to DARAB for determination of existence of
agrarian dispute. After DARAB determination, courts will render judgment.
AGRARIAN REFORM means redistribution of lands, regardless of crops or fruits produced, to
farmers and regular farmworkers who are landless, irrespective of tenurial arrangement, to include
the totality of factors and support services designed to lift the economic status of the beneficiaries and
all other arrangements alternative to the physical redistribution of lands, such as production or profit-
sharing, labor administration, and the distribution of shares of stocks, which will allow beneficiaries to
receive a just share of the fruits of the lands they work.

AGRICULTURAL LAND refers to land devoted to agricultural activity as defined in this Act and not
classified as mineral, forest, residential, commercial or industrial land.

AGRARIAN DISPUTE refers to any controversy relating to tenurial arrangements, whether leasehold,
tenancy, stewardship or otherwise, over lands devoted to agriculture, including disputes concerning
farmworkers' associations or representation of persons in negotiating, fixing, maintaining, changing,
or seeking to arrange terms or conditions of such tenurial arrangements.
It includes any controversy relating to compensation of lands acquired under this Act and other terms
and conditions of transfer of ownership from landowners to farmworkers, tenants and other agrarian
reform beneficiaries, whether the disputants stand in the proximate relation of farm operator and
beneficiary, landowner and tenant, or lessor and lessee.

AGRICULTURE, AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISE OR AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITY means the

cultivation of the soil, planting of crops, growing of fruit trees, raising of livestock, poultry or fish,
including the harvesting of such farm products, and other farm activities and practices performed by a
farmer in conjunction with such farming operations done by person whether natural or juridical.

REQUISITES OF AGRICULTURAL TENANCY RELATIONSHIP

1. The parties are the landowner and the tenant
2. The subject is agricultural land
3. There is consent
4. The purpose is agricultural production
5. There is personal cultivation
6. There is sharing of harvest or payment of rental

EXTINGUISHMENT OF TENANCY RELATIONSHIP (Sec. 8, RA3844)

1. Abandonment
2. Voluntary surrender
3. Absence of successor under Sec. 9, RA3844 in the event of death or permanent incapacity
• Lessor must, within 1 month, choose from the following:
a. The surviving spouse
b. The eldest direct descendant by consanguinity
c. The next eldest descendant or descendants in the order of their age
AGRICULTURAL LESSOR may dispossess lessee in the following circumstances:
1. Legal conversion
2. Non-compliance to terms and agreements
3. Planted other crops or used the land for purposes other than what was agreed
4. Fails to adopt proven agricultural practices
5. Fails to pay rental
6. Suffers substantial damage thru negligence of the agricultural lessee
7. Subleases the land
AGRICULTURAL LESSEE may terminate leasehold in the following circumstances:
1. Cruel, inhumane and offensive treatment
2. Non-compliance of lessor to the agreement
3. Compelled to perform acts other than agricultural activities
4. Commission of crime
5. Voluntary surrender