Mandatory ROTC approved in final 3rd reading by House of Rep

Its about time!

At long last the House of Representatives approved the bill to make the enrollment in the Reserve Officers’ Trainning Course mandatory for Grades 11 and 12 students.

House Bill 8961 on the third and final reading had a vote of 167-4-0. 167-Yes, 4-No, and 0-for abstained.

ROTC training under the sun (photo credit to owner)

The counterpart measure in the Senate championed by Senators JV Ejercito, Sherwin Gatchalian and Manny Pacquiao, remain pending at the committee level.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte earlier said he wanted to require military training for senior high students to “instill patriotism” and “love of country among our youth.”

On January 23, 2002, Republic Act 9163 or the National Service Training Program Act of 2001 was signed into a law.

The law allowed college students to choose between ROTC, Literacy Training Service and Civil Welfare Training Service as part of their required National Service Training Program.

As expected left leaning groups and lawmakers are making the noise regarding this recent move, saying this will only militarize the Filipino students.

 Some quarters have suggested reviving the ROTC to put a stop on the New People’s Army (NPA) recruiting activities in the different universities and colleges in the country.

The bill provided some exemptions:

Those physically or psychologically unfit as certified by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Surgeon General or his authorized medical officer.

Those who have undergone or are undergoing similar military training.

Those who were chosen by their school to serve as varsity players in sports competitions.

Those exempt from training for valid reasons as approved by the Department of National Defense.

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Report from PhilStar , BAS-CBN News