The Department of Agrarian Reform in Negros Occidental yesterday called on all beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program to comply with the lease back agreement of the department before entering into contracts.

Felix Servidad, provincial agrarian reform officer, said most holders of certificate of land ownership awards enter into lease contracts without informing their office so when disputes arise between the two parties, DAR can only arrange for dialogs.

He said what has been agreed and signed between the two parties has to be followed and complied with to avoid problems. DAR has to know the contents of the agreement to let the farmers understand what is in it.

Yesterday, farmers of Hacienda Nahalin in La Carlota City rallied and demanded for a dialog with the administrators because they have not received their benefits as agreed in the contract.

In a report by ABS-CBN, the farmers asked for a dialog on Nov. 23 since they had not received the benefits agreed upon in the stock distribution option in 1992.

Mylene Residoro, a farmer beneficiary, said they had complied with the agreement and they want to review it because they have not received any benefits from the corporation.

They also demanded an audit of the income of the corporation to show whether they are losing or not.

Earlier, farmer beneficiaries of Hacienda Carmenchika in Pontevedra also leased their lands to two private corporations and tried to reclaim them before the contract expires.*LTG

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