Patriotism and the ROTC

by Jose Ma. Montelibano

A soldier of the Philippine Army instructs an ROTC cadet officer | Photo by Kguirnela via Wikimedia Commons

The ROTC program in the Philippines was junked without much resistance or regret because it was both unpopular and ineffective. The unpopularity was to scandals and controversies, including the murder of an ROTC cadet who exposed anomalies of the program at his university. That it was ineffective was just as obvious because it was useless after students took it.

Now, there is much talk and effort to revive the ROTC as a mandatory program. From the point of view of patriotism and nationalism, It is not difficult to imagine why the ROTC can be helpful to a young citizen’s life. Many other countries have a military training program as a natural course for young citizens. On the surface, there is enough justification – on the surface, that is.

Because we cannot compare ours with any of theirs. Because we cannot compare an unpopular, ineffective program with no proven value. Before we can compare ours with what other countries have, we have to talk about the same thing. Not apples versus oranges, just because both are fruits.

The history of ROTC in the Philippines is long, dating back to 100 years ago. Let me not belabor the pre-WWII history when the Philippines was a colony of the United States. Let me jump to the era when the Philippines gained independence and governed itself in July 1946. From then to now, let me explain why ROTC has a little leg to stand on from the platform of functional military orientation and patriotism. Or good citizenship.

My earliest memory as a young boy points to stories from my parents and the people around me regarding the communist rebellion from the late 1940s. From one name to another until the current NPA. From the 1970s until very recently, there was a Muslim rebellion in Mindanao. In other words, for more than 70 years, there has been a violent rebellion in the Philippines.

That background should have elevated ROTC to be a most crucial and effective program – the patriotic defense of society against armed insurgents and terrorists.

I may not have all the critical relevant data about the ROTC except what I experienced once a week for two school years in college. That does not make me an expert compared to a few classmates enamored with ROTC then. They went beyond the mandated two years and extended their service throughout college. Ultimately, we lived our lives together in the same Philippine society – me without fighting the insurgency and they, surprisingly, without fighting.

Did the post-WWII history of the ROTC and of all the cadets who took the mandated program benefit a society plagued with armed insurrection for over 70 years? How many of the millions of Filipinos who took the ROTC enlisted in the military to fight communist rebels and Muslim secessionists? I still recall that the military did not even require a college degree to accept recruits; therefore, there was no ROTC experience. I also know that many recruits to the Armed Forces of the Philippines did so to have employment despite the risks involved.

“In a possible scenario of war, what side will we be on? Do we prepare against China, or do we prepare against the United States? This is an important question that has to be answered because the answer will make Filipinos accept the program more willingly or with great opposition.”

That is the functional purpose of military training, rudimentary as it may be under the old ROTC program. It simply did not bear fruit in the actual combat of the armed forces against rebels of all kinds.

If we are considering reviving a mandated ROTC program for senior high school students, let us try to understand the context in which it can benefit students and the country. With China and its 9-dash line directly affecting our security and the security of the rest of the world, there appears to be a possibility of armed conflict. Is this what the government expects young Filipinos to prepare for?

In a possible scenario of war, what side will we be on? Do we prepare against China, or do we prepare against the United States? This is an important question that has to be answered because the answer will make Filipinos accept the program more willingly or with great opposition.

Let us then go to the more intangible purpose – patriotism. That is a big word and an even bigger spirit. However, patriotism must express itself in word and spirit to action and behavior.

This requires all of us to focus on patriotism. Just because a new ROTC program can instill patriotism in young citizens, I will seriously rethink any personal objection of mine. Patriotism is such a necessary virtue for all citizens. Any mandated ROTC program must then be evaluated for its power to develop patriotism.

It seems that patriotism is the central concern that we must first focus on more than an ROTC program simply as a tool to teach a love of country. There is an urgent need for patriotism in a nation where poverty and corruption are the greatest threats and maybe even the root cause for a continuing armed insurgency. An authentic culture of patriotism will address both poverty and corruption.

However, young citizens who will be the audience of ROTC are not the present cause of poverty and corruption. If they were, there is a greater and urgent need for the immediate return of ROTC. But who are the perpetrators of poverty and corruption today? If only we could identify them, they should be the first to be mandated to take a deep course on patriotism.

Not condemning them but only accepting what many among the public have been saying all these years; politicians, government bureaucrats, and greedy businessmen have been seen as putting their interests ahead of the people’s. That is gravely unpatriotic. Can there be a hybrid ROTC program for them? Mandated ROTC for Filipino youth will quickly become more acceptable if there is.

You may also like

Leave a Comment