PRESIDENT Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. said that the implementation of the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps in Senior High School will help boost the disaster response in the country.

Marcos said that ROTC will prepare students for disaster response.

“Mas marami rin tayong maihahanda na sibilyan para sa mga ganitong disaster response sa pamamagitan ng ROTC program dahil hindi lang naman national defense ang itinuturo sa kanila kundi disaster preparedness and capacity building para dito nga sa tinatawag na risk-related situations na itinuturo sa kanila,” he said.

Marcos made the statement after a magnitude 7 earthquake hit Abra on Wednesday which killed 10 people and affected over 200,000.

In his first State of the Nation Address on July 25, 2022, the President batted for the reimplementation of mandatory ROTC, saying the program will motivate, train, organize and mobilize students for disaster preparedness and capacity building for risk-related situations.