SEVENTY-EIGHT percent of Filipinos agree with the proposed revival of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program for college students, a Pulse Asia survey commissioned by the office of Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian showed.
The survey, conducted last March 15 to 19, asked 1,200 respondents nationwide “how much do you agree or disagree with the proposal to implement ROTC to all students in college and majority responded “agree.”
Forty-three percent of the respondents said they “strongly agree” with the proposal, while 35 percent said they “somewhat agree.”
Of the number of respondents who answered “agree,” 77 percent were from the National Capital Region, 72 percent in Luzon, 80 percent in the Visayas region, and 92 percent were from Mindanao.
Those who “agree” belong to the social classes A, B, and C at 81 percent, while 78 percent were from the social class “D” and another 81 percent were from social class “E”.
Eight percent, however, “cannot say if (they) agree or disagree,” while 13 percent “disagree,” six percent “somewhat disagree,” and seven percent “strongly disagree.”
Seventy-one percent of the respondents agree to the revival of the ROTC program because they believe that “young people will learn discipline and responsibility,” 60 percent said the ROTC program will train students to be prepared to defend the country, 59 percent said it will develop leadership skills through the program, 40 percent said the youth will learn the value of teamwork, and 35 percent said the youth will become patriotic.
Seventy-five percent of the respondents who disagree with the program think the ROTC program will also increase cases of hazing, abuse, and harassment; 56 percent said it is just a waste of time, 44 percent said the program will only become “an instrument of power of the leaders/officers,” 43 percent said it will only be a burden on the students, 40 percent said it will cause mental health problems, and 17 percent believes it will be another source of corruption.
Gatchalian, author and co-sponsor of Senate Bill No. 2034 or the ROTC Act, said the survey results show the support of Filipinos in implementing anew the ROTC program.
He assured that the proposed measure has safeguards, including the creation of a grievance board in every ROTC unit which will receive complaints or motu propio conduct investigations on any complaint, abuse, violence, or corruption.
The ROTC Act seeks to institutionalize the mandatory basic ROTC program in higher education institutes (HEIs) and Technical Vocational Institutions (TVIs) for all students enrolled in not less than two-year undergraduate degree, diploma, or certificate programs.
