FILE PHOTO: Various military units parade in Camp Aquinaldo to celebrate the 76th anniversary of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in 2017. INQUIRER FILES
MANILA, Philippines — A two-year mandatory basic military and police training program for all college and technical vocational students is being proposed in the Senate.
Students who fail to undergo the training program would not be qualified for graduation, according to Senate Bill No. 1565 filed by Senator Francis Tolentino.
Tolentino explained that his proposed measure aims to increase the awareness of students on the country’s need for human resources in times of war, calamities and disasters, and national or local emergencies.
This, he added, is also in support of the government’s law enforcement strategy against crimes and other civic obligations.
READ: Mandatory military service proposed
“The proposed bill provides safeguards for the protection of all higher and technical vocational students against abuses such as bribery, corruption, graft, hazing, sexual harassment, and others which had become the concern of the public in the past,” the senator said.
“With this proposed measure, the youth – the hope of our motherland – will rekindle in their hearts their love of country and fellow citizens, nationalism and patriotism, and will once again make their mark in the annals of history,” Tolentino added.
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Students may be exempted from undergoing mandatory training if they are physically or psychologically unfit; chosen by their school to serve as varsity players in sports competitions; and for other valid reasons as approved by concerned government agencies, upon recommendation by any educational institution.
The bill, at the same time, provides several incentives for students undergoing the military and police training program.
They could be eligible, for instance, for enlistment in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and Bureau of Fire Protection “unless a waiver is issued by the Department Secretaries of the aforementioned military and civilian organizations.”
For those undergoing the training and accepted in the Advance Military Training Course, the measure proposed free hospitalization in any government hospital in case of accident or injury during the training.
Public and private higher education and technical vocational schools are likewise mandated under the bill to provide insurance to students undergoing the military and police training.
Those who could complete the training and a four-year baccalaureate degree would be considered as First Level Civil Service Eligible while graduates of Advance Military Training Program with a four-year baccalaureate degree would be considered a Second Level Civil Service Eligible in the Civil Service, according to the proposed law.