RULING AWAITED: There is persistent talk that the Supreme Court is ready to hand down a decision on Hacienda Luisita for the 6,500-hectare sugar estate in Tarlac to be parceled out and given to its tenants as mandated by the agrarian reform law.

That is, however, not confirmed. In short, it is still rumor.

But whatever happens to the Luisita case, the political interests of President Noynoy Aquino and the higher interests of the presidency would be served if his clan moves early to transfer the land to the tenants and help them maximize their yield and improve the quality of their lives.

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WIN OR LOSE: For impact purposes, preemptive distribution of the land must be carried out regardless of how and when the Supreme Court resolves the Luisita issues before it.

* If the Luisita clan loses the case and then must comply with the SC decision, it would look like they gave the land to the tenants only because the Court ordered it. That is not a pretty picture.

* If the Luisita clan wins the case and keeps the land, the strife may not necessarily end there. The legal debate and possible physical resistance could continue. The seeming reluctance and resistance of the clan to agrarian reform would continue to haunt the Aquino presidency.

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UNDERCUT THE S.C.: We assume that the President has up-to-date A-1 intelligence on the status of the case, so his clan should be able to move before the court hands down a ruling.

If an adverse SC decision is coming as rumored, the magnanimous act of distributing the land now will make the court’s ruling somewhat irrelevant.

In a real sense, the distribution will make President Aquino come out winner – thereby easing the hurt of the loss of the heirloom estate and undercutting the political setback dealt by the adverse SC ruling.

After distributing the land, the more the hacienda owners will grow in esteem by helping the new small owners organize to achieve economy of scale, adopt modern farming and integrate production and marketing efforts.

Hacienda Luisita could become a model of enlightened agrarian reform, helping cement the Aquinos’ place in history.

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COMPARATIVE VALUE: Discounting its sentimental value, how much is Hacienda Luisita worth compared with the presidency that is again in the hands of a member of the clan?

What is the market value of Luisita before and after its worth zoomed with its being traversed and served by the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx) that has been pumping economic blood into Central Luzon?

Assuming Luisita is worth P2 billion, the Philippine presidency – not to mention the legacy that history assigns to it — is definitely worth more than that.

Keeping both Luisita and a viable presidency for a full six-year term may be a difficult endeavor. If Noynoy Aquino (with the clan behind him) has to make a choice, will he cling to Luisita or aim for leaving another Aquino presidency that history will treat with Camelot-like fondness?

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NICHE IN HISTORY: Way back on Aug. 22, 2010, we wrote in Postscript: President Aquino is standing on a stage of history where he could be projected as the nation’s most socially enlightened president ever.

In one bold stroke of his pen, he could be that president.

The storyline revolves around Hacienda Luisita, the family heirloom. The 6,500-hectare sugar estate in Tarlac is enough to gain for Noynoy that coveted niche in history that had eluded his father Ninoy in death and his mother Cory in life.

The entire scenario rests on his solemn oath as president to defend the Constitution and execute the law.

He has reiterated this oath and promise so often that he is now unable to evade it. Not that he has any intention of dodging duty. He has, to use a worn-out metaphor, painted himself to a corner.

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VISION & LEGACY: If the Supreme Court decides that Hacienda Luisita must not be packaged as a stock corporation but parceled out to the tenants as mandated by the agrarian reform law, the President is duty-bound to carry out that ruling without mental reservation.

An SC decision adverse to the hacienda owners is still a big if. But if it does come, that could be the defining moment of Noynoy, who could then cement the Aquino legacy on social justice without having to die for it.

If he has the vision, and the right advice, Nonoy should now prepare precisely for that possibility — a Court order hewing to the letter and spirit of the law giving the tenants the land they had tilled for generations.

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MODEL HACIENDA: As promised, the President should forthwith execute the (any) decision. Despite their sentimental attachment to the hacienda, the clan should not fall back to a Plan B exploring a possible evading or diluting of the decision.

Respecting a Supreme Court decision is standard reaction. President Aquino can rise above the norm by his exemplary handling of the situation after the land is distributed to the workers.

In quick follow-up, President Aquino can make history and notch a mark for social justice by moving resolutely to transform Hacienda Luisita into a Model Agrarian Reform Area. It will be a dramatic statement that he truly cares.