DND sees ‘phased’ ROTC implementation

A defense official earlier said the program would require up to 10,000 military personnel to train students from 2,400 universities and colleges nationwide.

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said the Department of National Defense fully supports the revival of the mandatory Reserve Officers Training Course in higher educational institutions.

The DND is ready to start the program, Galvez said after Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa’s outburst during a Senate hearing over the seeming unreadiness of the department to implement the program.

During the hearing, Defense Undersecretary Franco Nemesio Gacal said “certain critical requirements” must first be met before mandatory ROTC is revived.

Gacal earlier expressed concern that pushing the program would require around 9,000 to 10,000 military personnel to train students from 2,400 universities and colleges nationwide.

Galvez said the DND is committed to taking an active part in the legislative process for the passage of a law that would make mandatory the ROTC program. He said they are ready with “inputs, whenever and wherever they are needed.”

He added that the DND and the Armed Forces of the Philippines are already meeting with the Commission on Higher Education and other concerned agencies on various concepts as to how the ROTC may be implemented.

“We can implement this using a ‘phased approach’ wherein we will have pilot and simulation runs in selected universities while preparing our personnel, logistical and budgetary requirements for its full implementation,” Galvez said.

The phases may include preparation for curriculum development, selection and training implementers, personnel, logistics, and budget planning, as well as a selection of pilot volunteer schools, he added.

The defense chief said the projected timeline from the enactment of the law to the initial implementation will be about two to three years, while full implementation can be done within five years.

The DND and AFP, he added, will harness the expertise of the Regional Community Defense Groups of the Philippine Army, Air Reserve Centers of the Philippine Air Force, and Naval Reserve Centers of the Philippine Navy in managing the ROTC program.