Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III on Tuesday ordered the speedy distribution of idle government-owned lands to landless war veterans and their surviving spouses or orphaned children, as well as retired military and police personnel, and even graduates of any four-year agricultural courses.
The order was pursuant to a directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to work double-time to identify government lands and distribute them to qualified beneficiaries.
Estrella instructed all field offices to conduct on-site validation activities, piece together pertinent documents, and determine the areas for distribution.
Estrella said there were 24,459 hectares of government-owned lands for field validation, while 14,118 hectares of them are targeted for distribution this year under Executive Order No. 75 of 2019.
The President, in his first State-of-the-Nation Address, promised to pursue the “distribution of unused government agricultural lands to landless war veterans, their surviving spouses or orphaned children, retired military and police personnel and agricultural courses graduates.”
In a two-page memorandum, DAR Undersecretary for field operations Kazel Celeste echoed Estrella’s order, directing regional and provincial land reform implementers to conduct field validation activities immediately and submit their reports at the soonest possible time.
She expressed DAR’s determination to distribute identified government lands upon advising concerned implementers to seek military and/or police assistance “in cases wherein you are denied entry by the government instrumentality.”