Press Release - Tolentino: ROTC bill marches on after receiving PBBM's go signal

The bill mandating tertiary level students to undergo the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program has received the go signal from President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr.

This was revealed by Senate Majority Leader Francis 'Tol' Tolentino, one of the measure's principal authors, in an interview on DZBB on Sunday. This means that plenary deliberations on the bill would earnestly resume following Congress' month-long break, he added.

"With the President's go signal, the ROTC bill has been moved to Tier 1 from Tier 2 in the list of the Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) - making it a top priority. So, when the session resumes, we expect to discuss it right away," Tolentino said.

The senator believes that one remaining matter for the senators to resolve is the transitory provision, particularly, on whether the program will last for one or two years.

"We can make the first year the basic course, followed by advanced training in the second year. For those who wish to specialize further, we can introduce an Executive ROTC curriculum," explained Tolentino, a Brigadier General reservist.

To make the measure more holistic and relevant to current challenges, Tolentino said that the basic program could integrate subjects on climate change and environmental stewardship, disaster preparedness, and civics. Meanwhile, the executive program could feature courses on cyber security or naval warfare, in the case of cadets under the Philippine Navy.

Tolentino is also thinking of introducing a provision that would allow smaller colleges to pool their resources to enable them to offer the ROTC program as a cluster. He noted how currently, some smaller schools lack the resources to implement ROTC on their own.

The senator expressed confidence that there are enough numbers in the chamber to approve the measure, whose counterpart in the House of Representatives has already passed third reading.

Asked if he thinks the ROTC would contribute to addressing the current conflict in the West Philippine Sea, the senator replied: "Our concerns in the West Philippine Sea are not just about maritime issues, but reflect the mindset of our society. If our youth