SENATOR Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa is not keen on convincing those who are against the proposed mandatory Reserved Officers Training Corps to change their mind.

“Defending this country is not a matter of choice, it is a constitutional duty of every citizen of this republic,” Dela Rosa said.

“Therefore, there is no need of convincing these unpatriotic Filipinos,” he added.

He was commenting on the result of the survey conducted by the Catholic Educators Association of the Philippines that the majority of students in catholic schools are against the mandatory ROTC.

The survey conducted last April showed that 53 percent of the respondents were opposed to the ROTC measure, 28 percent were not while 19 percent were undecided.

Dela Rosa endorsed the ROTC bill for plenary deliberations in the Senate. He was hopeful that the measure would be signed into law this year.