President Benigno Simeon Aquino III is committed to fulfill his campaign promise to distribute the vast Hacienda Luisita to farmer-beneficiaries in five years, Malacañang said Sunday.

Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda assured that the President would not take back his word following his election as the nation’s leader.

“On Hacienda Luisita, his promise is clear that he would distribute that within five years. That will be fulfilled,” Lacierda said over government radio.

Lacierda added Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio delos Reyes has stated that the land dispute case involving Hacienda Luisita will be considered like any ordinary case.

In his inaugural address last Wednesday, President Aquino did not include the resolution of the Hacienda Luisita case as among the priorities in his first 100 days in office.

Instead, he focused on addressing the nation’s fiscal problems; fighting corruption in the bureaucracy; and going after former President Arroyo for alleged sins against the people.

Back in the campaign trail for the presidency, Mr. Aquino declared that he would distribute his family’s vast sugar estate to farmer beneficiaries in five years, earning cheers from various groups.

The Cojuangco clan owns a small percentage of the 6,000 hectare sugar estate. The landholding has more than 5,000 farmer-beneficiaries.

Recently, Chief Justice Renato Corona has expressed interest in resolving the land dispute case of Hacienda Luisita after four years of collecting dust at the Supreme Court (SC).

Some farmers’ groups have welcomed Corona’s move but expressed concern that Mr. Aquino may now be more equipped with legal tools to shield his family property from being redistributed.

Malacañang, on the other hand, was silent on the violent dispersal of farmers on Mendiola Bridge near the Palace last Saturday.

The farmers from Hacienda Yulo in Laguna and Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac were seeking genuine land reform during their protest action.