THE UNDENIABLE FACTS I look almost exactly like my father that old soldiers salute me! Since military courtesy demands that I return the salute, I do it in the snappiest way! It is automatic for me. The thesis of the late General Benjamin R Vallejo at the defence college remains relevant. First he concluded that the ROTC program never did produce well trained reservists due to many factors one of which is lack of personnel and material resources. However the higher education system remains as the best and most cost effective way to produce well trained officers for the armed forces and the University of the Philippines ROTC unit proved that this indeed was possible. In higher education, military training will have to be integrated into the university itself, with universities hosting training battalions and the old idea of an ROTC cadet corps will have to give way to mobilizable units. This radical citizen army concept will have to seamlessly integrate with the academic nature of universities with them recognizing the importance of military training in the defence of the state against external aggression and in for securing the peace of the nation, youth development. This idea is closer to the Israeli idea but in Israel, the mobilizable forces are not localized in the universities. It essentially will make an elite military academy redundant, although it can be maintained for reasons of tradition. Too radical? The recent presidential administrations have dealt a disservice to the countrys defence with the ill considered de emphasis on citizen military training. Now we are paying the price for folly! I
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 14:45:15 +0000
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