Presumptive Vice President Sara Z. Duterte said Monday that pushing for the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) among the youth has nothing to do with her becoming the new Department of Education (DepEd) secretary.
In January this year, Duterte said she would propose the mandatory rendering of military service for all Filipinos 18 years old and above when she gets elected as vice president.
“About ROTC and DepEd, I would like to remind those ‘intelligent’ people that DepEd is all about basic education and Alternative Learning System (ALS). So it has nothing to do with ROTC,” she said in a radio interview.
When presumptive President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced last week that Mayor Sara accepted the position, various groups raised speculations about the ROTC returning to the education curriculum.
“(On) May 11, BBM and I (once again) talked about how I could help the country. It was decided that I would work on producing skilled learners with a mindset to realize their full potential as individuals,” Duterte said.
“ROTC has no connections to DepEd,” she pointed out.
Earlier, Duterte’s camp downplayed the claims of lawyer Bruce Rivera that her priority in the DepEd would be the ROTC.
Duterte’s spokesperson Liloan, Cebu Mayor Christina Frasco-Garcia said the matter was never discussed. (PNA)
