The Philippine Army (PA) will recruit nearly 5,000 individuals to be part of their regular force this year, and the application was made easier as it is now available online.
Colonel Louie Dema-ala, PA spokesperson, said the recruitment forms part of their efforts to fulfill their yearly quota, and the new recruits will replace the soldiers who are up for retirement, those who are discharged due to various cases, and those who are lost in combat.
"We have changed the process as it is now online to make the recruitment and training centralized. For this year, we have a quota of 800 for officers and 4,029 for the enlisted personnel," Colonel Louie Dema-ala, PA spokesperson, said in a televised public briefing on Monday, February 26.
Interested applicants were encouraged to go to the website of the "Join the Army" (https://jointhearmy.ph) or the Facebook page of the Army Personnel Management Center to register.
They can either apply in the Officer Candidate Course (OCC) where they will be Army officers after their training or in the Candidate Soldier Course (CSC) where they will be enlisted personnel.
The OCC is a one-year rigorous training program for all qualified baccalaureate degree holders who aspire to lead and serve as Commissioned Second Lieutenants in the Regular Force of the Philippine Army.
Applicant for the OCC must be a natural-born Filipino citizen, a baccalaureate degree holder, single with no parental obligation, at least five feet tall (both men and women), physically and mentally fit, at least 21 years old but not a day older than 27 years old upon oath-taking, and should have no pending cases in court.
They will undergo multiple tests such as the Armed Forces of the Philippines Service Aptitude Test (AFPSAT), Army Qualifying Exam (AQE) and Special Written Exam (SWE); interviews, physical fitness test, medical examination, and deliberation before the oath-taking.
Once recruited, they are entitled to a monthly salary of around P42,000 plus various benefits.
Meanwhile, the CSC is a 16-week training to adopt three modules namely Transformation Module, Basic Squad Training Module, and Warfighting Module.
An applicant for the CSC should be at least a Senior High School graduate, a natural-born Filipino citizen, single with no parental obligation, at least five feet tall (both male and female), physically and mentally fit, at least 18 years old but not a day older than 26 years old upon oath-taking, and should have no pending cases in any court.
Dema-ala said the Army is not only for officers and enlisted personnel as they also need civilian human resources.
"That involves our medical personnel, nurses, and office staff," he noted. Civilian human resources are entitled to a wage depending on their salary grade.
This March 1, the first batch of 800 enlisted Army personnel that were recruited through online process will take their oath.
At present, the Army has a total strength of around 120,000 regular force.
Call for reservists
Dema-ala also encouraged individuals to be part of the reservist force of the Army especially with the evolving security landscape in the region.
To date, there are around one million reservists nationwide and aside from combat skills, the army is also prioritizing individuals who are skilled in cyber defense, according to the army spokesman.
"We have organized new Regional Community Defense Groups and Community Defense Centers to cater to our countrymen who want to volunteer as a reserve force," Dema-ala said.
He stated that the army leadership was also looking at ways to improve the curriculum of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) "in assumption of its return."
"In assumption of the ROTC's return, we are finding ways to improve the curriculum so that it will be responsive to the current situation, to the security environment that we are having right now," he explained.
Interested applicants aged 18 and above may go to the nearest CDGs and CDCs in their barangays to apply as a military reservist. They will undergo a 45-day basic military training to equip them with knowledge on the military organization, skills on how to properly handle a weapon, and military discipline.
"Serving our country knows no status. Anyone, anybody who wants to serve is accepted in our reserve force," Dema-ala said.
"We really need it [reserve force] because our regular force in the armed forces is not that many. We need the reserve force not only for combat but also for humanitarian assistance and disaster response. During the recent landslide in Davao de Oro, majority of the responders are reservists," he added.