The Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) Benguet and Registry of Deeds Benguet awarded a total of 44 land titles to beneficiaries in Itogon, Benguet last September 27 at the Itogon Municipal Gym.
The 44 land patents awarded to applicants during the Handog Titulo Program of the government cover a total of 4.5441 hectares within the Itogon area.
PENR Officer Edgardo Flor said that titling is a continuing program of the government and it can be a proof of ownership of the land.
Flor explained that more than 5,000 titles are still pending with the Registry of Deeds that would be benefiting applicants within the province when they are released.
OIC Engr. Leandro L. de Jesus of CENRO Baguio has encouraged applicants who are willing to have their land properties patented, including government offices and schools for the special patents, to coordinate with their respective CENR Office.
He manifested that the CENR Office personnel, through coordination with the local government unit, are prepared to visit the municipality or the concerned barangays for the acceptance of the individual Public Land Applications.
According to Mr. Rogelio Cumpas, Jr., representative from the Registry of Deeds-Benguet, as per their observations, numerous titles indeed have not been registered because of lack of mandatory requirements for titling thus their office reduced the requirements for the title owners to easily comply with from previous 5 requirements now only 3.
Cumpas said that the 3 requirements are the tax declarations, non-tax delinquency duly issued by the municipal assessor’s office and Certificate of Registration from the Office of PENR. The non submission of mandatory requirements is one reason why those titles were not yet registered.
Meanwhile, the Handog Titulo program is being held yearly in celebration of the anniversary of the Bureau of Lands that was created on September 2, 1901, being the 120th anniversary of the then Bureau of Lands, now the Land Management Bureau.
The awarding was attended also by Municipal Administrator Atty. Noel Ngolob of Itogon, the representatives from the Office of the Congressman of Benguet and some local officials of the municipality.**by PENRO Benguet
