Farmers working on rice field. | file photo
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday signed the New Agrarian Emancipation Act of 2023, condoning the P57.557 billion debt of 610,054 farmers.
The law specifically condones the unpaid amortization, interest, surcharge, and penalties of existing loans of farmers tilling nearly 2 million hectares of land. The farmers are agrarian reform beneficiaries under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
Albay Rep. Jose Ma. Salceda previously called the measure a hallmark of the Marcos Jr. administration’s first year.
In his first State of the Nation Address in 2022, Marcos identified the bill as a legislative priority.
READ: P57-billion land reform law best so far by Congress
The House of Representatives passed the measure in December 2022 with 245 votes. The Senate likewise unanimously approved the bill last March.
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