December 13, 1996
DAR OPINION NO. 107-96
HON. TEOFISTO T. GUINGONA, JR.
Secretary
Department of Justice
Padre Faura, Manila
Dear Secretary Guingona:
This is in connection with the Memorandum of Fidel B. Morales, our Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer of Misamis Occidental to our Secretary regarding the alleged uncooperative acts committed by some judges, prosecutors and PNP personnel against agricultural lessees. This controversy stemmed from the implementation of Administrative Order No. 4, Series of 1989, which prescribes the fixing of provisional lease rentals in coconut lands at 75%-25%.
As gleaned from his Memorandum, the Municipal Agrarian Reform Officer (MARO) of Bonifacio, Misamis Occidental in his effort to fully implement Administrative Order No. 4, Series of 1989 directed all agricultural lessees in his area to abide by the mandate of said Administrative Order, which is to pay lease rentals at 75%-25% with 75% as the share of the agricultural lessees and the remaining 25% as the share of the landowner from the produce of the land. Ironically, these unselfish effort of the Municipal Agrarian Reform Officer caught the ire of the landowners affected who in no time began to institute endless suits against agricultural lessees obviously to harass them. These matters were brought to the attention of the Legal Division of the Provincial Agrarian Reform Office hoping that said agency can amply protect the interest of agricultural lessees by defending them in courts. But to their surprise, the prosecutors, judges and PNP personnel who are supposed to uphold the rule of law appears to be the persecutor. This has been shown by the fact that pleadings submitted by the lawyers of the Legal Division were allegedly ignored by the Municipal Trial Court in Bonifacio, Misamis Occidental, and eventually ordered the immediate arrest of agricultural lessee as a ploy to discourage them from adhering strictly to the rate of rentals set under Administrative Order No. 4, Series of 1989.
For these reasons, Department of Agrarian Reform is considering several legal options recommended by the DAR Regional Office in order to protect the rights of the agricultural lessees and also not to derail the effective implementation of CARP. However, the DAR is of the view that the Department of Justice, is in a better position than the DAR to pursue whatever remedies to take insofar as it involves the prosecution of actions. Stated otherwise, it is within your competence and expertise to initiate moves that would secure the lessees against the harassment of some landowners.
However, on the propriety of filing estafa cases jurisprudence reveals that it is erroneous to charged agricultural lessees with estafa for as held in the case of "People of the Philippines vs. Esmilia" (40 O.G. 11), the crime committed is qualified theft if the coconuts are taken from the trees or removed from the coconut grooves. The purpose of imposing heavier penalty is to encourage and protect the development of the coconut industry as one of the sources of our national economy.
Thank you.
FOR THE SECRETARY:
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) LORENZO R. REYES
OIC-Undersecretary, LAFMA
Copy furnished:
PARO Fidel B. Morales
Provincial Agrarian Reform Office
Province of Misamis Occidental
Gango, Ozamiz City