President Rodrigo Duterte believes the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program should be revived and become mandatory in all schools owing to the lack of able-bodied men and women to defend and aid our country if the situation arises.
The House of Representatives has been quick to heed the President’s call, filing no less than a dozen measures calling for the restoration of the ROTC program. All of them will be discussed by the House Committee on Basic Education and Culture in its hearing on Dec. 10.
Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, in what some may view as a twist of fate, has rallied lawmakers behind the President’s call to revive the ROTC.
As the country’s 14th President, Arroyo had signed the National Service Training Program Law that made ROTC optional among college students.
The program, however, was removed from the educational system following the death of a college student who had exposed the alleged anomalies in his ROTC unit in 2001.
This is why as representative of Pampanga’s 2nd District, the Speaker has proposed the creation of a Citizens Service Training Course that will expand and improve the ROTC program to enable the youth “to truly take part in nation-building.”
The CSTC would repeal the NSTP under Republic Act 9163 that was enacted during Arroyo’s term as President and removed the mandatory nature of the ROTC.
Retired generals support the revival of mandatory military training for college students. The Association of Generals and Flag Officers, Inc. (AGFO) said the defense preparedness of the country “has not been served well” since the ROTC program was discontinued 16 years ago.
“Geopolitical developments in the Asia Pacific region have accentuated the weaknesses of the Philippine defense posture and exposed the very limited capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Philippines to defend the national sovereignty,” the AGFO said.
President Duterte has echoed this stand, saying: “That simple hazing has resulted in an aberration of our country. There’s no deeper bench that could be pulled because the next Filipino has no knowledge [of military basics] anymore, they lack patriotism. It’s because [mandatory] ROTC was removed.”
Noting that youth training should not only be confined to external and territorial defense, Arroyo, in her House Bill No. 5305, said young people should be taught and trained to participate in public and civic affairs which include internal security threats and disaster management.
“This measure seeks to establish a comprehensive framework for the training and mobilization of our youth and implements the constitutional vision of drawing them into the mainstream of national life by providing avenues for their participation in public and civic affairs, primarily through the establishment of the CSTC,” Arroyo said.
Under the bill, a Basic Citizen Service Training Course shall be mandatory for all college students in baccalaureate degree and vocational courses in all public and private universities, colleges and other learning institutions all over the country.
The CSTC will retain the external and territorial training provided under the ROTC program but will be expanded to cover trainings in internal security, peace, and order as well as disaster risk reduction and management.
All those who will finish the CSTC will become part of the Citizen Service Corps. They may be called upon by the government including its agencies and local government units to defend the State against external aggressors to defend its territory, assist in matters of internal security and peace order, and serve during times of calamities and other emergencies.
An Advance CSTC may also be taken and upon completion, with all graduates of the program will be entitled to a reserve commission as a Second Lieutenant or its equivalent in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and Office of Civil Defense, provided they obtain a baccalaureate degree within four years after completion.