LMB wraps up “Talakayang Panlupa”

The Land Management Bureau (LMB) had concluded the last episode of Talakayang Panlupa last September 30, 2020 aired live on its official Facebook Page (DENR-Land Management Bureau.) The fourth episode featured the LMB Director, Atty. Emelyne V. Talabis and Chief of the Land Policy and Planning Division, Engr. Henry P. Pacis.

In the first segment, Engr. Pacis discussed about the challenges, reforms and innovation on land administration and management.

“In short term, too many requirements like certifications, clearances and affidavit are the common complaints in the government when it comes to land titling. They say that government offices are too far and fragmented, pupunta ka sa regional office, then pupunta ka sa isang local office tapos babalik ka na naman sa regional office. Ito ang mga kadalasang reklamo sa gobyerno,” Engr. Pacis emphasized.

In land sector, it is more complicated since there are too many government agencies involved in terms of land titling. However, as stressed by Engr. Pacis, the government has done many things to improve the service of the government.

“The government introduced greater transparency through RA 9485 also known as the Anti Red Tape Act (ARTA) of 2007 and the RA 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business Act. The ARTA was enacted to improve the efficiency in the delivery of government service to the public and at the same time prevent graft and corruption by providing strict penalties. While RA 11032 aims to streamline the current systems and procedures of government services, making these more transparent and more competitive. Parang karera to, pabilisan tayo, hindi lamang sa bansa natin ha, we are compared with other countries, pabilisan sa pag-provide ng similar service,” Engr. Pacis added.

Additionally, part of the first segment is the discussion about the role of technology in improving the system of land administration and management. Engr. Pacis emphasized that cost-effective technology is the key. One example is the conversion of paper based records to digital data for easier accessibility by the public. Another one is the linking of agency systems for sharing and cross checking of records and information that will reduce the transaction cost.

“Pandemic, in a positive way, also pushed us to maximize technology in reaching out to people,” Engr. Pacis reiterated. Talakayang Panlupa through Facebook is just one of the many efforts of LMB on this direction.

The second segment, which featured Atty. Talabis, focused more on the Land Sector Development Framework (LSDF). The LSDF is a road map that gives direction through a vision for the land sector of the DENR. In creating such road map, different agencies that has relation in terms of land management and even the different branch such as legislative branch, executive branch join hands to reach its vision. The roadmap time frame is 2010 to 2030 and is currently updating for improvement.

Its vision is to have an effective, efficient and equitable land administration and management services for resilient and sustainable economic growth. “Hindi matatawaran yung contribution ng lupa para sa economic growth ng ating bansa dahil pag stable ang security mo sa lupa, may peace of mind ka at magagamit mo ito para sa benefit mo,” Atty. Talabis said.

Atty. Talabis also explained the mission of the LSDF which is to provide tenure security and formally recognize the land rights of the people. LSDF also aims to provide effective management of government owned land to maximize the government revenue especially now that the government needed fund to sustain its services. Another mission is to establish an effective property valuation and taxation system. Lastly, LSDF intends to develop integrated geospatial data information to ease the access to land data not only for the public, but for the partner agencies as well.

Additionally, according to Atty. Talabis, the LSDF is divided into five (5) thematic areas namely: Land Administration, Land Management, Land Information Management, Property Valuation and Taxation, and Enabling Environment.

“The fifth thematic area of LSDF, Enabling Environment, refers to partly land laws and policies. There are antiquated land laws that need to be updated; and because of new technology, new laws can be proposed,” Atty. Talabis emphasized.

Lastly, the LMB Director shared that LSDF was on updating stage and next month, they will consult it to the stakeholders on land administration and management and in different agencies of government for improvement.

The last segment was the Question and Answer (Q&A) portion wherein the previous questions from Episodes 1-3 raised by the clients in the comment box including the live questions from Episode 4 were randomly picked and were answered by the land experts of LMB. It was also commented by a certain client that she hopes that the show will continue not only for the whole month of September. With this, Atty. Talabis announced that Talakayang Panlupa will be a regular show of the Bureau as a way to reach out to the public and give them clarity on issues pertaining to lands.