DAR: CAT not covered by CARP

THE Supreme Court decision on the Hacienda Luisita case covers the distribution of the 4,915.75-hectare sugar estate to qualified farmer-beneficiaries, but does not cover the Centro Azucarera de Tarlac (CAT).

This was stressed by the Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio delos Reyes in response to a call made by the Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) and the Alyansa ng Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita (Ambala) for the agency’s top official to intervene and stop the Hacienda Luisita Inc.-First Pacific Groups of Hong Kong deal on the sugar mill.

First Pacific Groups of Hong Kong is reportedly interested in buying the sugar mill from HLI.

“The SC order covers agricultural land, not the plant, properties and equipment of HLI,” De los Reyes said.

UMA and Ambala issued a joint statement calling for the Department of Agrarian Reform’s (DAR) intervention to stop the deal between businessman Manuel Pangilinan’s First Pacific Groups of Hong Kong and HLI.

“Secretary de los Reyes should exercise his constitutional mandate to stop the negotiation. Obviously, it is a move to exclude not only the sugar mill but also HLI’s other properties that soon will be liquidated as payment for the farmworkers P1.33-billion shares on the proceeds of sale to RCBC and NLEX management of the 500 hectares and 80.2 hectares respectively,” the statement stressed.

But de los Reyes told the BusinessMirror that UMA and Ambala got it wrong.

He said the DAR is not mandated to stop any transaction entered into by a company, for as long as it does not involve agricultural land that can be or have been covered by the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

“We are not authorized to stop any transaction that does not involve agricultural land,” he said.

He added that the auditing of the financial statement will determine the legitimate corporate expenses that are deductible from the P1.33-billion proceeds of the sale of the two properties which used to be a portion of the hacienda.

“Whatever is left of it will be distributed to the farmers. The order does not include the plant, properties and equipment of the HLI,” he said. –Jonathan L. Mayuga / Reporter, Businessmirror