AGRARIAN Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman clarified that the DAR has submitted to the Senate Committee on Agrarian Reform a full accounting of the so-called Marcos wealth as required by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

"We submitted on two occasions documents explaining the use of said funds including those allocated to the CARP implementing agencies. The first document was submitted May 27 while the more detailed report was submitted last June.

The DAR said a total of P162 billion was appropriated for the program from 1987 to December 2007. From this, P72.171 billion came through the Presidential Commission on Good Government from recovered Marcos Swiss deposits and remittances from sequestered properties. Some P35.043 billion of this money consists of the so-called Marcos wealth.

Pangandaman, however, stressed that only P24.511 billion and not P30 billion – as reported – of the P35.043 billion was actually transferred to the agrarian reform fund: P8.854 billion in 2004; P7.300 billion in 2005, and P8.357 billion in 2006.

"The Bureau of Treasury still holds the P10 billion which was earmarked for the human rights victims," he said.

The P24.511 billion also represents the actual charges released to the CARP implementing agencies, with Land Bank of the Philippines getting the biggest share of P12.185 billion. The said amount was paid to the landowners whose lands were covered by CARP. Pangandaman said DAR used P10.535 billion for land survey, distribution of certificates of landownership awards and support services while DENR was allocated P688 million for land survey and distribution of public lands.

Other agencies that also used the said funds were the Land Registration Authority, P240 million; Department of Trade and Industry, P136 million; National Irrigation Authority, P494.2 million; and Department of Public Works and Highways, P233.4 million. The money funded the land registration and titling of CARP awarded lands, provision of skills training and marketing assistance, construction of irrigation facilities as well as farm-to-market roads in agrarian reform communities nationwide.

Pangandaman said CARP records are open to those who may wish to be clarified on the fund’s utilization. "I would like to reiterate that the DAR is giving premium on public accountability and transparency as required under the law," he said.