770 PHIL. 15
PEREZ, J.:
WHEREFORE, the petition is GRANTED. The April 15, 2008 Order of the Regional Trial Court, Malolos City, Branch 79, is hereby REVERSED and SET ASIDE. The Regional Trial Court is hereby ordered to assume jurisdiction over the case and act on it with dispatch.[9]The appellate court ruled that petitioner failed to establish tenancy relationship between the parties. According to the appellate court, the elements of consent and sharing of harvest are lacking. Moreover, petitioner was held as unqualified to be a successor-tenant by virtue of hereditary succession because he is not among those listed under Section 9 of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 3844, he being only a relative by affinity.
Section 50. Quasi-Judicial Powers of the DAR. - The DAR is hereby vested with primary jurisdiction to determine and adjudicate agrarian reform matters and shall have exclusive original jurisdiction over all matters involving the implementation of agrarian reform, except those falling under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
x x x x
Based on the above-cited rules, only DARAB can adjudicate an agrarian dispute.RULE II
Jurisdiction of the Board and its Adjudicators
SECTION 1. Primary and Exclusive Original Jurisdiction. — The Adjudicator shall have primary and exclusive original jurisdiction to determine and adjudicate the following cases:
1.1 The rights and obligations of persons, whether natural or juridical, engaged in the management, cultivation, and use of all agricultural lands covered by Republic Act (RA) No. 6657, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL), and other related agrarian laws;
x x x xFor DARAB to have jurisdiction over the case, there must be tenancy relationship between the parties.
(d) Agrarian dispute refers to any controversy relating to tenurial arrangements, whether leasehold, tenancy, stewardship or otherwise, over lands devoted to agriculture, including disputes concerning farmworkers' associations or representation of persons in negotiating, fixing, maintaining, changing or seeking to arrange terms or conditions of such tenurial arrangements.
It includes any controversy relating to compensation of lands acquired under R.A. 6657 and other terms and conditions of transfer of ownership from landowners to farmworkers, tenants and other agrarian reform beneficiaries, whether the disputants stand in the proximate relation of farm operator and beneficiary, landowner and tenant, or lessor and lessee.
It appears that the element of consent and sharing of harvests are clearly lacking. [Petitioner] merely alleged that he was verbally asked by all the heirs of Guillerma Coronel to continue working on the land. The fact that [petitioner] was allowed to stay on the property does not mean that [respondents] impliedly recognized the existence of a leasehold relation with [petitioner]. Occupancy and continued possession of the land will not ipso facto make one a dejure tenant.According to the Court of Appeals, petitioner's claim that he succeeded Navarro as tenant is questionable. Section 9 of RA 3844 provides an exclusive enumeration of those who are qualified to succeed to the leasehold rights of a deceased or incapacitated tenant, to wit:
x x x x
In this case, [petitioner]could not present any evidence showing that [respondents] had recognized him as tenant. The other pieces of evidence submitted by the [petitioner] do not prove the alleged tenancy relationship as the certifications he presented could only show that he is the actual occupant of the land, a fact recognized by the [respondents] and the reason why they instituted an action for recovery of possession. Being an actual occupant of the land is definitely different from being a tenant thereof.
More importantly, [petitioner] was not able to show that he shared his harvests, not even once, with the [respondents]. He just reasoned out that he was not able to remit his dues because the land became unproductive due to the intrusion of saline waters. No explanation was offered to show that he exerted efforts to make the land productive for agricultural production. Instead, he took the opportunity to release bangus fingerlings but without giving any share of this income to the [respondents].[13]
Section 9. Agricultural Leasehold Relation Not Extinguished by Death or Incapacity of the Parties. - In case of death or permanent incapacity of the agricultural lessee to work his landholding, the leasehold shall continue between the agricultural lessor and the person who can cultivate the landholding personally, chosen by the agricultural lessor within one month from such death or permanent incapacity, from among the following: (a) the surviving spouse; (b) the eldest direct descendant by consanguinity; or (c) the next eldest descendant or descendants in the order of their age: Provided, That in case the death or permanent incapacity of the agricultural lessee occurs during the agricultural year, such choice shall be exercised at the end of that agricultural year: Provided, further, That in the event the agricultural lessor fails to exercise his choice within the periods herein provided, the priority shall be in accordance with the order herein established.Petitioner, a relative by affinity of Navarro, is, to the Court of Appeals, not qualified to succeed as tenant.
In case of death or permanent incapacity of the agricultural lessor, the leasehold shall bind his legal heirs.
Neither can this Court recognize him as the bona fide successor of Navarro's Certificate of Land Transfer (CLT) award under P.D. 27. The ruling in the case of Tumol vs. Esguerra, G.R. No. 150646, July 15, 2005, is instructive:We also note the appellate court's reference to the well-entrenched principle that the jurisdiction of the court over the subject matter on the existence of the action is determined by the material allegations of the complaint and the law, irrespective of whether or not the plaintiff is entitled to recover all or some of the claims or reliefs sought therein.[15] A court does not lose its jurisdiction over a case by the simple expedient of a party raising as a defense therein the alleged existence of a tenancy relationship between the parties. The court continues to have the authority to hear and evaluate the evidence, precisely to determine whether or not it has jurisdiction, and, if, after hearing, tenancy is shown to exist, it shall dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction.[16]Pursuant to the provisions of the Presidential Decree No. 27, and the Policy of the Government laid down in the Code of Agrarian Reforms to establish owner-cultivatorship and the economic family size farm as the basis of agricultural development of the country, the following rules and regulations shall be observed in the event of death of a tenant-beneficiary:In fact, Ministry Memorandum Circular No. 19, Series of 1978 also provides:
Succession to the farmholding covered by Operation Land Transfer, shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of the New Civil Code of the Philippines subject to the following limitations:
x x x x
2. For the purpose of determining who among the heirs shall be the sole owner-cultivator, the following rules shall apply:
x x x x
b. Where there are several heirs, and in the absence of extra-judicial settlement or waiver of rights in favor of one heir who shall be the sole owner and cultivator, the heirs shall within one month from death of the tenant-beneficiary be free to choose from among themselves one who shall have sole ownership and cultivation of the land, subject to Paragraph 1(b) and (c) hereof: Provided, however, That the surviving spouse shall be given first preference; otherwise, in the absence or due to the permanent incapacity of the surviving spouse, priority shall be determined among the heirs according to age.Where there are several heirs, and in the absence of extra judicial settlement or waiver of rights in favor of the one heir who shall be the sole owner and cultivator, the heirs shall[,] within one month from the death of the tenant-beneficiary[,] be free to choose from among themselves one who shall have sole ownership and cultivation of the land, xxx Provided, however, That [sic] the surviving spouse shall be given first preference; otherwise, in the absence or due to the permanent incapacity of the surviving spouse, priority shall be determined among the heirs according to age (emphases and underlining omitted).Moreover, the ministry memorandum circular specifically provides that:1. Succession to the farmholding covered by Operation Land Transfer shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of the New Civil Code of the Philippines subject to the following limitations:
a. The farmholding shall not be partitioned or fragmented.
b. The ownership and cultivation of the farmholding shall ultimately be consolidated in one heir who possesses the following qualifications:
(1) being a full-fledged member of a duly recognized farmer's cooperative;
(2) capable of personally cultivating the farmholding; and
(3) willing to assume the obligations and responsibilities of a tenant-beneficiary.
c. Such owner-cultivator shall compensate the other heirs to the extent of their respective legal interest in the land, subject to the payment of whatever outstanding obligations of the deceased tenant-beneficiary.
Again, being a relative only by affinity of the deceased Bernabe Navarro, [petitioner]cannot lay claim as his successor. The (c)ourt cannot accept his assertion that he was already identified by the DAR as the successor on the basis of land amortization receipts. Said receipts merely show that [petitioner] was the payor but these do not, in any way, recognize him as the tenant-beneficiary of the land. It could be that it was in the account of Bernabe Navarro. The [c]ourt has not come across any official document from the DAR that expressly identified him as Bernabe Navarro's successor.[14]
x x x xReading the material allegations of the Complaint, the decision under review concluded that the case below was for recovery of possession or an accion publiciana, a plenary action to recover the right of possession which should be brought in the proper regional trial court when dispossession has lasted for more than one year. It is an ordinary civil proceeding to determine the better right of possession of realty independently of title. In other words, if at the time of the filing of the complaint more than one year had elapsed since defendant had turned plaintiff out of possession or defendant's possession had become illegal, the action will be an accion publiciana.[18]
3. Plaintiffs are the registered owners of a parcel of farmland located at Brgy. Sta. Monica, Hagonoy, Bulacan with an area of four (4) hectares, more or less, under Tax Declaration Property Index No. 020-10-022-11-027, which they acquired from Guillerma Coronel Vda. de Cruz, plaintiff Paterno's mother. x x x
4. For a long period of time, the said farmland was tenanted by Bernabe Navarro;
5. On April 6, 1985, tenant Bernabe Navarro voluntarily surrendered his tenancy rights over the aforesaid lot through a Sinumpaang Salaysay. x x x
6. After Bernabe Navarro relinquished his tenancy rights in favor of [respondents'] predecessor-in-interest, no other person was installed as tenant of the farmland;
7. Not long thereafter, [respondents] discovered that [petitioner] Jesus Velasquez entered the farmland without their consent and without the knowledge of their predecessor-in-interest. Thus, they confronted [petitioner] for his actuations.
8. However, from 1985 up to the present, [petitioner] Jesus Velasquez never paid even a single centavo to [respondents] as rent for the use of the land. Worse, [petitioner] converted the farmland into a fishpond without notice and consent of the [respondents] or their predecessor-in-interest;
9. Sometime in 1988 and 1989 Fernando Cruz and Jose Cruz, brothers of [Paterno Cruz], attempted to visit the farmland but they were menacingly denied entry by the [petitioner];
10. Considering that [respondents] never received any rental payment from [petitioner], they sought means on how tc earn income therefrom. Hence, on July 6, 1995, [respondent] Paterno Cruz, together with his siblings, entered into a lease contract over the premises subject matter of this action with Godofredo M. Tosco. x x x
11. Unfortunately, [petitioner] unjustifiably refused the entry of and surrender to Mr. Godofredo Tosco the peaceful possession of the farmland. This, [petitioner] did, despite receipt from [respondent] Rosario Cruz a letter informing him that Mr. Tosco would be the lawful possessor of the lot by virtue of his lease contract with [respondents]. x x x
x x x x
14. On account of [petitioner's] illegal occupancy of the lot in controversy, [respondents] were deprived of their income that could be derived from the rental thereof, the amount of which is submitted to the sound discretion of this Honorable Court, after [petitioner] is ordered to account for all the benefits he derived from use of the premises.[17]