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Apart from the Department of Agrarian Reform, nearly a dozen other
agencies are involved in the implementation of the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Program. These include the Land Registration
Authority and the National Irrigation Administration as well as the
Departments of Environment and Natural Resources, Trade and
Industry, Public Works and Highways and Agriculture.
The central offices of all these agencies are
located in the National Capital Region. Many are, in fact, within
the proverbial stone’s throw of the DAR Central Office—DARCO,
for short—along the Quezon Memorial Circle. Despite their
proximity to one another, problems of miscommunication and lack of
coordination still surface on occasion.
Imagine how much more serious those and other
problems—not to mention restiveness among the dislocated
staff—could become once the government implements a plan to move
DARCO from its present location in Metro Manila to the Far South.
Davao City is about an hour and 40 minutes by commercial jet from
Metro Manila—and nearly two days by land and ferry.
The plan to move DARCO and the main offices of
other government agencies to various parts of the archipelago was
announced by President Arroyo in her State of the Nation address
last July. And because it was premised on her desire to “bring the
government closer to people,” the plan drew loud applause from the
lawmakers and other officials assembled at the Batasan.
But while the President’s objective is
laudable, in the particular case of DARCO it could prove to be
impractical, if not downright counterproductive.
According to DAR sources, the bulk of CARP’s
coverage is in Luzon and the Visayas, which are all within easy
reach of Metro Manila by whatever means of transportation.
While Davao is one of the country’s most
progressive urban centers, it still is not the communications and
the transportation hub that the NCR is. Rather than expedite land
reform, transferring DARCO to distant Davao could even further delay
the implementation of CARP.
Some P350 million have been earmarked for
DARCO’s move to Davao. Those funds would be better spent to
acquire farms for landless farmers. At an average of P1 million a
hectare for farmland acquisition, the transfer budget could actually
buy 350 hectares for destitute peasants.
The President was obviously ill-advised on the
plan to transfer DARCO to Davao. A more doable option is to
strengthen the department’s various regional and provincial
offices—P350 million should go a long way in achieving that goal.
Ban low-numbered plates
Days after he was elected Rep. Rufus Rodriguez
of Cagayan de Oro announced he will not get No. 8 plates for his
car. The opposition congressman said lawmakers should not place
themselves above other road-users; like everybody themselves, they
should submit themselves to traffic regulations. Rodriguez has kept
his promise.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel has
taken the matter one step further. Last weekend he announced that he
is seeking a ban on low-number protocol or courtesy plates on
vehicles of high-ranking government officials.
“The issuance of those low-numbered car plates
for high government officials paints an ugly picture that top-level
public servants are a special lot, entitled to treatment and
privileges not enjoyed by ordinary Filipinos,” Pimentel said.
Under Senate Bill 1158 he authored, all
low-numbered car plates starting from No. 2, all the way down to the
numbers assigned to Cabinet members and bureau directors issued in
the past will be canceled and deemed withdrawn.
Pimentel said certain public officials have the
twisted notion that the low-numbered plates give them license to
break traffic rules.
“Many high-ranking government officials and
middle-level bureaucrats today roam our streets like members of
royalty in heavily-tinted vehicles sporting low-numbered car
plates,” Pimentel said. “They evoke a false impression that
these favored few are exempt and insulated from the reach of traffic
rules and regulations.”
He added: “Since they are public servants,
they should be at the forefront in observing road regulations that
are to be followed by all. They should lead by example.”
Under the Pimentel bill, the official vehicles
of the President and those of representatives of foreign states, as
provided by any treaty, agreement or protocol sanctioned by
international law or practice would be exempted from the ban on
protocol plates.
The exemption, however, will not apply to
representatives of foreign states or international organizations
that do not grant Filipino diplomatic representatives similar
privileges.
Question: Will other lawmakers be as willing as
Senator Pimentel and Congressman Rodriguez to give up their
protocol-plate privileges?
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