EXECUTIVES of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) signed last Thursday the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the debt moratorium on the payment of land amortization and interests incurred by agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs).
LandBank’s statement read a Joint Administrative Order (JAO) outlined the IRR for Executive Order (EO) 4 by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Signed by the President last September 13, the EO (“Directing the Implementation of a Moratorium on the Payment of the Principal Obligation and Interest of the Amortization Due and Payable by Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries”) calls for a 1-year moratorium on loan payments of ARBs. The latter received agricultural land under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (Carp), or Republic Act (RA) 6657.
The JAO was signed by LandBank President and CEO Cecila C. Borromeo and DAR Secretary Conrado M. Estrella III. The JAO stipulated that the one-year moratorium covers the payment of the principal value and the annual interest due and payable by the ARBs.
“The moratorium period will provide the needed time for Congress to pass the law condoning the existing agrarian reform loans for the current ARBs and free land distribution for future beneficiaries,” Estrella was quoted in a statement as saying.
The LandBank said the current debt moratorium covers the financial obligation to pay the total cost of the land under Presidential Decree 27, including interest at the rate of 6 percent per annum as provided under Section 6 of EO 228. The moratorium also covers the financial obligation to pay the principal value including the 6-percent annual interest of the 30-year land amortization of the ARBs under Section 26 of RA 6657, as amended.
Historic initiative
Borromeo was quoted in the statement as saying “this historic initiative…is now taking off.”
She added the state-run lender “will provide immediate financial relief to ARBs nationwide and yield positive results towards ensuring food security in the country.”
The LandBank serves as the collection agent of the National Government for land amortizations from ARBs, pursuant to its mandate as the financial intermediary of the RA 6657. All collections are remitted by the Bank to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) as part of the revenue of the National Government.
The LandBank said the JAO covers the identification of beneficiaries qualified to avail of the 1-year payment suspension, “with the impact of the initiative to enhance the productivity and profitability of the ARBs duly documented and promoted.”
The lender added that EO 4 directed the Landbank and the DAR to jointly submit to the Office of the President, through the Office of the Executive Secretary, a comprehensive report on the implementation of the EO, including data on the number of ARBs actually covered and impact of the moratorium, among others.
Image credits: Land Bank of the Philippines