Secretary John Castriciones of the Department of Agrarian Reform on Thursday warned private security agencies that cases would be filed against them for meddling with the work of the agency and obstructing the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.
He said he has received reports that private security agencies hired by landowners have prevented DAR officials and personnel as well as farmer-beneficiaries from gaining access to farmlands already placed under program.
“Install agrarian reform beneficiaries already awarded with certificates of land ownership award,” he told officials in a verbal order during am ongoing assessment and planning conference in Baguio City.
This was a direct response to strong clamor from among uninstalled farmer-beneficiaries, some of them reaching out to him through text messaging, demanding immediate installation in their farm lots.
Many farmer-beneficiaries are still not enjoying peaceful tilling of their awarded lands due to continued harassment from the landowners’ alleged henchmen, he noted.
“Identify the security agencies of these landlords and file cases against them before the Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agency of the National Police Commission,” the DAR chief said.
DAR said it would seek police and military assistance to penetrate even the heavily guarded landholdings, while many of the farmer-beneficiaries would even request to put up police detachments to protect them and ensure their rights are safeguarded.
“The problem is we cannot make them stay for a long time. At the most, policemen posted at the police detachment(s) stay for 30 days or a month only. Once the policemen are gone, the harassment resumes,” a DAR field official, who requested anonymity, said in a statement.
“It’s basically a cat-and-mouse game. Once the (police) are out, the (alleged landowners’ henchmen) will play. This is particularly true in far-flung areas,” he added.