Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte wants the immediate revival of the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program in all colleges nationwide.
Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo told Philippine Star that the proposal to revive the program was discussed during the cabinet meeting in Malacañang.
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Panelo said, proposed during the Cabinet meeting that female college students also undergo the mandatory ROTC training, to which Duterte agreed to.
“It’s going to help in the building of discipline and values especially in this generation and we expect ROTC to be able to help build a sense of patriotism among the next generation,” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella was quoted by CNN.
In his first SONA, Duterte called on Congress to “strengthen our ROTC Program to instill love of country and good citizenship” as he explained his administration’s campaign against illegal drugs.
Meanwhile, reports from the Philippine Daily Inquirer stated that the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) and militant group Anakbayan both expressed opposition against the said move.
NUSP spokesperson Kevin Castro told Inquirer that instilling discipline among the youth can be done without resorting to a mandatory ROTC program.
“The unpopularity of bringing back mandatory ROTC remains significant as students, parents and school officials are highly convinced that it is not only through that program wherein the youth can be instilled ‘discipline’ and ‘good citizenship’,” Castro said.
Under the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Republic Act (RA) 9163, otherwise known as the National Service Training Program (NSTP) Act, makes the ROTC “optional and voluntary” in 2002.
