House probe on alleged PUP hazing sought

The Kabataan party-list will file a resolution seeking to investigate the alleged hazing incident involving Polytechnic University of the Philippines students under the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC).

 

“Violent acts committed against students should not be taken lightly. This is an issue that needs to be addressed immediately,” Kabataan party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said in a statement released on Thursday. 

 

The resolution will ask the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education (CHTE) to probe the PUP incident, Ridon said. 

 

The Kabataan party-list will file the resolution by Thursday or Monday, he said in a separate text message. 

 

On Wednesday, a PUP freshman accused two ROTC officers of physically abuse. The 18-year-old victim claimed she was punished by her ROTC superiors for failing to attend their briefing last month.

 

"The investigation would inquire about their experience in the hands of the ROTC officers... Ultimately, we are interested in seeing the ROTC program abolished," Ridon told GMA News Online. 

 

Abolishing ROTC

 

Ridon earlier filed House Bill No. 3143 or the National Service Training Program (NSTP) Reform Act which seeks to strengthen the NSTP through the establishment of additional socio-civic service programs and completely abolishing the ROTC.

 

“The reported hazing incident involving ROTC officials in PUP further strengthens our resolve that the arcane military training program in our schools should now be completely excised. It is apparent that even if ROTC is now only optional, it is still a grave threat to students’ rights,” Ridon was quoted in the statement.

 

“What we need as a nation today is not an army of young men and women trained in the ways of the military but an army of volunteers and advocates ready to serve and uphold the needs of their communities and the nation as a whole," he noted. 

 

Meanwhile, student organizations in PUP have started a signature campaign calling for justice for the victim and the abolition of ROTC, the statement noted. They aim to gather at least 10,000 signatures.

 

Kabataan party-list also planned to launch an online petition in change.org calling for the scrapping of ROTC in schools. —KG, GMA News