MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte urged the Senate to pass its version of the measure mandating senior high school students to undergo Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC).
Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea on Monday said Duterte wrote to Senate President Vicente Sotto III to certify Senate Bill No. 2232 as urgent.
Duterte said the mandatory ROTC was needed for the Filipino youth “to invigorate their sense of nationalism and patriotism necessary in defending the State and to further promote their role in nation-building.”
The President said last year he might issue an executive order (EO) for the revival of mandatory ROTC if it was legally possible, citing it would “instill patriotism, love of country among our youth.”
Late last month, the House of Representatives heed Duterte’s order as it passed its version of the measure, which required students in Grades 11 and 12 to undergo Basic ROTC program as a prerequisite for graduation.
However, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said it would be “next to impossible” to approve the ROTC bill given that the Senate only has one session left before the Congress ends.
“These measures would take hours of debate. I know for a fact that we have a different system in the Senate. The system in the Senate is the committee may approve it quickly… but the debates happen on plenary,” Zubiri said.
“We wish they were able to come out with the priority measure or certifications much earlier to help us be able to plan, study, and debate the measures in plenary. Unfortunately, these certifications were only given on Monday,” added Zubiri. /PN
