Question & AnswerQ&A (Acts No. 4197)
The primary purpose of Act No. 4197 is to facilitate and promote the occupation and cultivation of public land that is currently unoccupied through the establishment of settlement districts, and to appropriate funds for this purpose.
The Director of Lands, with the concurrence of the Directors of Forestry, Plant Industry, Health, and Public Works, shall recommend to the Governor-General the reservation of tracts of public land for settlement districts.
Settlement districts must consist of tracts of public land of not less than three hundred hectares each.
The Director of Lands must order the settlement district to be surveyed and subdivided into four-hectare lots.
The Secretary of Labor assumes administrative control of the settlement districts after they are declared open for settlement by the Governor-General.
Applicants must be citizens of the Philippine Islands or of the United States, over 21 years of age, and must have the qualifications required by existing laws for homestead applicants.
The Secretary of Labor may provide houses costing up to fifty pesos, one carabao per lot, agricultural implements, seeds, and loans not exceeding two hundred pesos repayable with interest at four percent per annum.
Settlers must cultivate and plant not less than sixty percent of the area of the land assigned to them each year with prescribed crops or products.
The settler's title may be revoked after investigation, and the land will revert to the government. The settler may continue to occupy the land as a lessee subject to monthly rental payments and compliance with conditions.
The Secretary of Labor must approve any sale, transfer, or contract relating to the settlement land before it can be recorded or considered valid.
Settlers must refund the government expenses in ten equal annual installments starting from the fifth year of occupation, with four percent interest per annum.
Naturalized citizens are not entitled to the benefits of this Act until five years after their naturalization date.
The superintendent may establish cooperative organizations among settlers for purchase and administration of government property and equipment and encourage settlers to invest in stock of these corporations.
The fund is under the control of the Secretary of Labor who manages disbursements, collections, and refunds connected with the settlement districts.
No, settlement superintendents are prohibited from engaging in any private business within the settlement that involves transactions with settlers.