shall be an essential condition that the applicant for the permit cultivate and improve the land, and if such cultivation has not been begun within six months from and after the date on which the permit was received, the permit shall be cancelled. The permit shall be for a term of one year. If at the expiration of this term or at any time prior thereto, the holder of the permit shall apply for a homestead under the provisions of this chapter, including the portion for which a permit was granted to him, he shall have the priority, otherwise, the land shall be again open to disposition at the expiration of the permit.
2. Act No. 441 (1939) – National Land Settlement Administration This Act created the National Land Settlement Administration, which was mandated to facilitate the acquisition, settlement, and cultivation of lands acquired from government or from private parties. It afforded opportunity to those who have completed military training to own farms and encouraged migration to sparsely populated regions like Mindanao. It further disposed of reserved, held, surveyed or subdivided lands to persons qualified under the Constitution and the Public Land Act.
This law has perpetuated the same discrimination of the earlier Public Land Acts against the Moros and other indigenous peoples. There were discrepancies in terms of allowable number of hectares that may be claimed between individuals and corporations, and with respect to non-Christian tribes. The law, for instance, reduced allowable Moro land ownership from 10 to four hectares, while the settlers retained 24 hectares. Corporations not owned by Moros were also permitted ownership of up to 1,024 hectares.
The National Land Settlement Administration (NLSA) created by Commonwealth Act No. 441 in 1939 introduced new dimensions into resettlement. Aside from the usual objectives, there was the item providing military trainees an opportunity to own farms upon completion of their military training. The Japanese menace was strongly felt in the Philippines at this time and this particular offer was an attempt by the government to strengthen national security. Under the NLSA, three major resettlements in Cotabato, namely, Koronadal Valley made up of Lagao, Tupi. Marbel and Polomolok and Ala (now spelled Allah) Valley consisting of Banga, Norallah and Surallah. By the time the NLSA was abolished in 1950, a total of 8,300 families had been resettled.
Rodil (2003, p. 111) elaborated that:
The law further facilitated the establishment of vast plantations and industrial companies that permitted Christian settlers and migrant workers from Luzon and Visayas to work in Mindanao as laborers. Such influx of migrants to Mindanao was so rapid that it eventually made the Moros and other indigenous communities a minority in the process. The cases of displacement of the Moros from their lands led to varied land-related conflicts and violent clashes. Land Tenure Stories in Central Mindanao
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