Wobbly Luisita arguments on SDO crumble in SC By Benjamin B. Pulta 08/19/2010

Wobbly Luisita arguments on SDO crumble in SC

By Benjamin B. Pulta 08/19/2010 Arguments offered by lawyers of the Cojuangco family-owned Hacienda Luisita crumbled upon scrutiny before the Supreme Court (SC) en banc yesterday as the Hacienda Luisita Inc. (HLI) management fought an uphill battle to defend the legality of the stock distribution option (SDO) as an alternative arrangement for land distribution under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). Luisita lawyer Gener Asuncion claimed the government can no longer reverse the SDO Agreement (SDOA) even as it refused to acknowledge that the more than 10,000 beneficiaries are tenants, insisting that they are mere “farm workers.” Asuncion said the SDOA as far as they are concerned had “matured into contracts” and are already covered by the non-impairment clause of the Bill of Rights.  Ironically, Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales who had administered the oath of office to President Aquino, tore away at the lawyer’s arguments as the lady magistrate pointed out that the constitutional guarantee against impairment of contracts covers only laws. “Do you consider the orders of the PARC (Presidential Agrarian Reform Council) laws or legislative acts?” Carpio-Morales said. Protests ran to last night prompting policemen to close Padre Faura where the Justice Department (DoJ) and the Supreme Curt are located.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100819hed1.html

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