Manila, July 27 -- The proposed mandatory Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) training for senior high school students does not force high school students to become soldiers, the spokesperson of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said.
Marine Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo was reacting to Senator Imee Marcos' pronouncement that she cannot accept the proposal, saying, "You really cannot force a kid to become a soldier."
"We take cognizance of the view of the good Senator Marcos as against 'forcing the kid to becoming (a) soldier' with regard to the ROTC. With all due respect, however, we maintain that taking and completing the ROTC program does not make him -- or her -- ipso facto a soldier," he said in a message to the Philippine New...