Former president Rodrigo Duterte defended Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte’s request for confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs), saying that she intended to use it to make military training compulsory again for high school and college students.
(From left) Former president Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Sara Duterte (Presidential Photo)
In an interview on SMNI on late Tuesday night, Oct. 10, the former chief executive explained why his daughter, who was seen with him earlier during his sister’s inurnment in Davao City, needed intelligence funds despite heading a civilian agency.
“Kuha ko yung utak ni Inday (I get what Inday wants),” he said, referring to the Vice President.
“Gamitin niya sa mga BMT, palakasin niya sa high school pati ibalik talaga niya ang ROTC, ipilit niya. So, make it compulsory, but that would be a long process kasi matagal na nawala ang compulsory ROTC (She will use it for BMT, strengthen high school, and bring back ROTC; she will push for it. So, make it compulsory, but that would be a long process because compulsory ROTC has been gone for a long time),” he added.
The elder Duterte stressed this was the “rationale” behind his daughter’s need for intelligence funds, citing that she was the one who told him this and insisted that he needs to “make it public.”
The younger Duterte believes that ROTC and BMT would instill a “sense of love of country.”
ROTC refers to the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC), which used to be a compulsory program for college students to train them in the rudiments of military service. BMT, meanwhile, refers to Basic Military Training that eligible Filipinos can take to become a reservist in the Philippine Army.
As secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) in a concurrent capacity, the younger Duterte has a mandate over elementary and secondary students, while the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which governs tertiary-level institutions, is under the Office of the President (OP).
The former president discussed that her daughter would want to have “a soft learning” about military training for the students, and insisted that there is a “clamor” for ROTC again.
“Ang sabi niya ngayon hindi ito mapilit agad (She said that this cannot be forced right now). You have to have a soft learning,” Duterte said, adding that the official wanted to conduct seminars and field trips for students.
The “field trip” would take them to military camps to see cannons, tanks, and military planes.
But he went on to give a piece of advice to the Vice President.
“Hindi maiintindihan ng mga komunista ‘yan. Sabi ko sa kanya magpranka ka na lang, itong intelligence fund na ito gagamitin ko para sa utak ng Pilipino kasi ito ang target ko, kayong mga komunista (The communists will not understand that. I said to her just be frank and say I will use this intelligence fund for the brains of the Filipinos because my target is the communists),” he added.
The former president’s interview came after the House appropriations committee announced that it stripped Duterte’s combined P650-million—P500 million for the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and P150 million for DepEd—proposed confidential funds for 2024.
It said the funds would be realigned to government agencies concerned with ensuring security in the West Philippine Sea.