By EUGENE ADIONG
BACOLOD City — A province-wide organization of farmworkers wanted the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) stopped.
CARP “failed to alleviate the economic condition of the rural poor,” said Ernesto Ambil, spokesperson of Kusog sang Obrero-Negros.
About 20 members of the group staged a rally in front of the provincial capitol building yesterday.
“Land distribution should be stopped,” Ambil stressed. “Instead, the government should set aside more funds for support services for land reform beneficiaries.”
Fifty-four percent of families of agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in agrarian reform communities live in poverty and has low productivity due to lack of government support, Ambil said, citing a 2009 study.
Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. himself doubted the capability of CARP to improve the lives of its beneficiaries.
“This is the longest land reform program (the country ever had). It should stop. It is not only counterproductive but also prevents progress,” Marañon said.
He said that, instead of boosting the country’s agriculture, the program is making it worse for the sector. It does not attract investors in agriculture, he stressed.
“The biggest question for DAR (Department of Agrarian Reform) is: How many of the three million ARBs nationwide whose lives have improved?” he said.
Marañon said the government should focus on giving support services to ARBs.
He said news media reports say the government had spent P150 billion for CARP. The amount could have been used for scholarship programs for the children of ARBs, he said.
“I’m calling on our congressmen and senators … it is about time we don’t extend CARP for another two years,” Marañon said.
CARP is set to expire this coming June 30.
Earlier, Lanie Factor, deputy national coordinator of Task Force Mapalad, said CARP is not a problem in itself.
“The implementation and the lack of support services for agrarian reform beneficiaries are the problems,” Factor said./PN
