WHEREAS,
notwithstanding my earlier instructions that no tenant-farmer shall be
ejected from the land cultivated by him, many landowners are ejecting
or threatening to eject their tenants;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, numerous complaints for ejectment have been filed in the
Courts by landowners against their tenants and orders have been issued
enjoining or restraining the latter from entering and cultivating their
farmholdings or impounding their harvest; and likewise, numerous
criminal cases have been filed by landowners against tenant-tillers
which arise from the possession and cultivation of farmholdings and
other agrarian causes, as a result of which tenant-farmers have been
arrested and detained; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the aforementioned acts have resulted in strained relations
between landowners and tenant-farmers or tillers of the soil which
threaten to disturb the peace and order conditions in the rural areas;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, these ejectment suits or other acts of harassment by
landowners intended to eject or remove their tenants cannot be
sanctioned or condoned by the Government, especially in the light of
our current efforts to bring forth a New Society — a Filipino society
that is more compassionate and that adheres to the basic principle of
social justice;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution as
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and pursuant
to Proclamation No. 1081, dated September 21, 1972, and General Order
No. 1, dated September 22, 1972, as amended, do hereby order and
decree, as part of the law of the land the following;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 1. No tenant-farmer in agricultural lands
primarily devoted to rice and corn shall be ejected or removed from his
farmholding until such time as the respective rights of the
tenant-farmer and the landowner shall have been determined in
accordance with the rules and regulations implementing Presidential
Decree No. 27.
Section 2. Unless certified by the Secretary of
Agrarian Reform as a proper case for trial or hearing by a court or
judge or other officer of competent jurisdiction, no judge of the Court
of Agrarian Relations, Court of First Instance, municipal or city
court, or any other tribunal or fiscal shall take cognizance of any
ejectment case or any other case designed to harass or remove a tenant
of an agricultural land primarily devoted to rice and corn, and if any
such cases are filed, these cases shall first be referred to the
Secretary of Agrarian Reform or his authorized representative in the
locality for a preliminary determination of the relationship between
the contending parties. If the Secretary of Agrarian Reform finds that
the case is a proper case for the court or judge or other hearing
officer to hear, he shall so certify and such court, judge or other
hearing officer may assume jurisdiction over the dispute or
controversy.
Section 3. In all cases, efforts shall be exerted by
all government officials to maintain the status quo in the relation
between tenant-farmers and landowners as already embodied in
Presidential instructions.
Section 4. All provisions of existing laws, orders,
rules and regulations, or parts thereof, in conflict or inconsistent
herewith are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
Section 5. This Decree shall take effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 22nd day of October, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-three.
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