Binay, Enrile, Pangilinan top ROTC centennial rites

The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) continues to serve 100 years on.

Sunday night, therefore, it is celebrating its centennial by toasting 100 of its most distinguished graduates in a ceremony dubbed “Gabi ng Parangal” and hosted by the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

From Vice President Jejomar Binay and Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile to businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan and University of the Philippines president Alfredo Pascual, the 100 will be honored at Tejeros Hall in the AFP Commissioned Officers Club, Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

“The military cannot be more proud and at the same time inspired by the achievements of the graduates of the ROTC program,” said AFP Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Jessie D. Dellosa in a statement.

“The sense of patriotism that was inculcated in them by the program was one of the driving factors that made them excel in their respective fields. We are optimistic the ROTC program will continue to shape leaders of character from future generations,” he said.

Youth in nation-building

The awarding ceremony is part of the anniversary celebration of the corps which has for its theme “ROTC Centennial, 100 years of Molding Leaders from Among our Youth in Nation-Building and in Defense of the Motherland,” AFP spokesperson Col. Arnulfo Burgos said.

The theme serves as a reminder of the corps’ contribution toward producing a number of exceptional leaders and accomplished individuals in various fields, he added.

Established in 1912, the ROTC was a mandatory two-year military training course for male college students until it became one of three components of the National Service Training Program in 2002, along with civic welfare and literary training service, for all college students.

Noted graduates

The AFP said the ROTC program “contributed to the success and character of those who are working at present in nongovernment services such as media, sports, the academe, business and industry, faith-based groups and nongovernment organizations.”

“The century-old corps’ program also honed the skills of our men and women in the military and other uniformed services,” it said.

Noted ROTC graduates now in the government include Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco Jr., Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chair Francis Tolentino, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr., Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, Senators Franklin Drilon and Francis Escudero, and former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr.

In the private sector, ROTC graduates include Concepcion Industries chair Jose Concepcion Sr., broadcaster and former Vice President Noli de Castro, Gawad Kalinga chair Antonio Meloto Jr. and Philippine National Red Cross head and former Sen. Richard Gordon.