February 6, 2004
DAR OPINION NO. 06-04
MEMORANDUM
TO : Director Gloria J. Fabia
Bureau of Land Acquisition and Distribution
SUBJECT : Issues Related to the Voluntary Offer to Sell (VOS) of the Properties of Ms. Adelina E. Yap
This refers to your memorandum requesting for advice and/or appropriate action relative to the letter of Ms. Adelina E. Yap regarding some issues affecting her properties subject of Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) coverage under the VOS scheme, to wit:
1. Willful refusal of the tenant-beneficiaries to settle their unpaid rentals/arrears to the landowner before titles are awarded to them; and
2. Distributing lands to the farmer beneficiaries (FBs) even if the landowners have not been fully paid for their lands.
On the first issue, pertinent are the provisions of Sections 26 (6) and 36 (6) of Republic Act No. 3844, as amended, otherwise known as the Agricultural Land Reform Code, to wit:
"Section 26. Obligation of the Lessee — It shall be the obligation of the agricultural lessee:
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(6) To pay the lease rental to the agricultural lessor when it falls due."
"Section 36. Possession of Landholding; Exceptions. — Notwithstanding any agreement as to the period or future surrender of the land, an agricultural lessee shall continue in the enjoyment and possession of his landholding except when his dispossession has been authorized by the Court in a judgment that is final and executory if after due hearing it is shown that:
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(6) The agricultural lessee does not pay the lease rental when it falls due: Provided, That if the non-payment of the rental shall be due to crop failure to the extent of seventy five per centum as a result of a fortuitous event, the non-payment shall not be a ground for dispossession, although the obligation to pay the rental due that particular crop is not thereby extinguished.
May we likewise invite your attention to the following provisions of the 2003 Department of Agrarian Reform Adjudication Board (DARAB) New Rules of Procedure, particularly Rule II, Section 1 (1.1 and 1.4) thereof:
"Section 1. Primary and Exclusive Original Jurisdiction — the Adjudicator shall have primary and exclusive original jurisdiction to determine and adjudicate the following cases:
1.1 The rights and obligation of persons, whether natural or juridical, engaged in the management, cultivation, and use of all agricultural lands covered by Republic Act (RA) No. 6657, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL), and other related agrarian laws;
1.2 The preliminary administrative determination of reasonable and just compensation of lands acquired under Presidential Decree (PD) No. 27 and the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP);
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1.4 Those cases involving the ejectment and dispossession of tenants and/or leaseholders;
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1.7 Those cases involving the review of leasehold rentals."
Accordingly, the party may bring the matter before the Provincial Agrarian Reform Adjudicator (PARAD) where the properties are located.
On the second issue, Section 16 (e) of Republic Act No. 6657 (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law) provides, quote:
"Section 16. Procedure for Acquisition of Private Land. — For purposes of acquisition of private lands, the following procedures shall be followed:
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(e) Upon receipt by the landowner of the corresponding payment or, in case of rejection or no response from the landowner, upon the deposit with an accessible bank designated by the DAR of the compensation in cash or in LBP bonds in accordance with this Act, the DAR shall take immediate possession of the land and shall request the proper Register of Deeds to issue a Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) in the name of the Republic of the Philippines. The DAR shall thereafter proceed with the redistribution of the land to the qualified beneficiaries." (emphasis supplied)
Given the above-quoted provision of law and as ruled by the Supreme Court, the CARP Law conditions the transfer of possession and ownership of the land to the government on receipt by the landowner of the corresponding payment or the deposit by the DAR of the compensation in cash or LBP bonds with an accessible bank (Association of Small Landowners in the Philippines, Inc. vs. Secretary of Agrarian Reform, 175 SCRA 343).
Thus, upon deposit with an accessible bank (i.e., Land Bank) of the compensation in cash or in LBP bonds, it already constitutes as compliance with the full payment requirement. The DAR may then take immediate possession of the land, request issuance of title in the name of the Republic of the Philippines and, thereafter, proceed with the redistribution of the land to qualified beneficiaries.
The matter of "just-ness" of the compensation, if raised by the landowner, may initially be determined by the DAR Adjudication Board but final determination thereof is with the courts of justice of competent jurisdiction. In other words, if the landowner refuses to accept the compensation offered to him, the issue of just compensation is perforce brought before the DARAB for its preliminary determination and if the landowner is not yet satisfied, the same may be brought before the Special Agrarian Court (SAC) for final determination of just compensation [Sections 16 (d and f) and 57 of R.A. No. 6657).
Finally, it should be stressed that there are two (2) distinct transactions involved in CARP coverage. The first is the transaction between the DAR and the landowner in the land acquisition process. The latter is the transaction between the DAR and the agrarian reform beneficiaries in the land distribution process. ETIDaH
The landowner may still be contesting the land valuation or the non-payment of rentals or arrears by the tenant-beneficiaries but title to the land may already be transferred, first to the Republic of the Philippines, then to the beneficiaries, for as long as there is already receipt by the landowner of the corresponding payment or the deposit by the DAR of the compensation in cash or LBP bonds with the Land Bank.
We hope to have clarified the matters.
(SGD.) RICARDO S. ARLANZA
Undersecretary for Policy, Planning and Legal Affairs Office