April 8, 1998

DAR OPINION NO. 44-98

MR. CESAR C . FRANCISCO

c/o SCECO-East

Comptroller's Department

P.O. Box 5190

Daman 31422

Saudi Arabia

Dear Mr. Francisco:

This refers to your letter dated 7 March 1998 requesting for opinion on the following supplementary questions in relation to a reply in your previous letter embodied in DAR Opinion No. 76, Series of 1997, to wit:

a)         By law, can the wife of the tiller inherit the right of her husband to till our land? How about the son?

b)         What will happen if the mother dies? Does the son have the right to continue tilling our land even if we want to till the land ourselves?

The property subject of your previous query is an agricultural land situated at San Antonio, Nueva Ecija with an area of three (3) hectares, more or less, was acquired, by your mother, through succession; that said agricultural land is the only piece of land owned by your parents except for the small lot where your house is located; that your father had it tilled by a farmer in San Antonio due to the presence of revolutionary forces in that place and when said farmer died, his son continued farming the land; that your brother now wants to till it by himself but said farmer does not want to give it, even if you are willing to pay him the amount of his right as tiller; that your brother is unemployed and is even poorer than the tiller; and that he realizes now that he needs to personally attend to your land so he can have same income and be able to continue sending his three kids in school.

In reply to your first query, quoted hereunder is the pertinent provision of Republic Act No. 3844 as amended (Agrarian Reform Code):

"Section 9.     Agricultural Leasehold Relation Not Extinguished by Death or Incapacity of the Parties. — In case of death or permanent incapacity of the agricultural lessee to work his landholding, the leasehold shall continue between the agricultural lessor and the person who can cultivate the landholding personally, chosen by the agricultural lessor within one month from such death or permanent incapacity, from among the following: (a) the surviving spouse; (b) the eldest direct descendant by consanguinity; or (c) the next eldest descendant or descendants in the order of their age; Provided, that in case the death or permanent incapacity of the agricultural lessee occurs during the agricultural year, such choice shall be exercised at the end of that agricultural year; Provided, further, That in the event the agricultural lessor fails to exercise within the periods herein provided, the priority shall be in accordance with the order herein established."

Applying the aforequoted provision, it is clear that the agricultural leasehold relation between the lessor and the lessee is not extinguished by the death or permanent incapacity of the parties and mandates that the leasehold shall continue between the agricultural lessor and the person who can cultivate the landholding personally, chosen in accordance with the provisions of said Section. Otherwise stated, it is only in the absence of the persons enumerated under Section 9 to succeed the deceased lessee that the agricultural leasehold relation could be extinguished. The son of the deceased tenant-spouses can succeed to the tenancy, provided there is no other direct descendant more qualified to succeed, in accordance with the order of priority mentioned in said Section 9 of R.A. No. 3844.

Regarding your second query, please be informed that under Section 7 of R.A. 3844, tenants are entitled to security of tenure, which means that they may not be ejected from their tillage unless authorized by the court for causes provided in said law. Moreover, personal cultivation is no longer a ground to terminate tenancy relationship because the same has been deleted as a ground for ejectment of the tenant under Section 7 of Republic Act No. 6389 which amended Section 36 (1) of R.A. No. 3844. Such being the case, you may not dispossess your tenant of his farmlot on the ground that you will personally cultivate your landholding.

We hope to have clarified the matters with you.

Very truly yours,

(SGD.) ARTEMIO A. ADASA, JR.

Undersecretary for Legal Affairs, and Policy and Planning