PREFACE

This module was designed with the intention of creating social awareness and
inculcating social responsibility among Filipino particularly the youth as part of their
pivotal role in nation building. It covers the National Service Training Program (RA
9163), Good Citizenship, RA 9165 known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs
Act of 2002, RA 10121 also known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction
Management Act of 2010, Environmental Awareness and Protection and
Commonwealth Act No. 1 also known as the National Defense Act, the original
policy which is the basis of the National Security Program of the Republic of the
Philippines.

This NSTP 1 Program is composed of six parts :

 Unit 1: RA 9163 The National Service Training Program
 Unit 2: Good Citizenship
 Unit 3: Drug and Substance Abuse Prevention and Control
 Unit 4: Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
 Unit 5: Environmental Awareness and Protection
 Unit 6: National Security Concerns

This module made use of varied exercises integrated with values development
and different techniques/activities that will motivate, organize, train, and mobilize the
NSTP trainees to do service to the nation.

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UNIT I

R.A. 9163: NATIONAL SERVICE TRAINING PROGRAM OF 2001

COURSE OUTCOMES
Explain the purpose, objectives, and components, of the NSTP and inter-
nalize CWTS and its components.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this module, you are expected to Acquire knowledge on the
history and significance of the R.A. 9163 in the purview of national security and de-
velopment.

The Philippine Constitution provides that the defense of the state is a prime duty of the
government and the people. In fulfillment of this duty, all citizens may be required by law to
render personal military or civil service. It further states that to become responsible citizen,
specifically in defending the security of the state requires gradual transformation through proper
training of the students in the tertiary level. It is the duty of the citizen to contribute to our
country's development in the attainment and preservation of a just and orderly society. This is
the essence of Republic Act No. 9163 known as the National Service Training Program.

The Evolution of the National Service Training Program

The imposition of the national program for service and training of the youth in the
Philippines began with the creation of Commonwealth Act No. 1, otherwise

In 1980, the National Defense Act was amended to give existence to Presidential
Decree No. 1706, otherwise known as the National Service Law. It mandated compulsory
national service to all Filipino citizens. It was composed of three main program components,
namely: Civic Welfare Service (CWS), Law Enforcement Service (LES), and Military Service
(MS). College students were given an option to choose one from among these components in
compliance with this requirement for tertiary education.

The implementation of the National Service Law, except the provision of the Military
Service was suspended by Presidential Memorandum Order No. 1 under the incumbency of
former President Corazon Aquino, paving the way for the conceptualization of the basic
Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC), embodied under R.A. 7077, effective school year
1986-1987.

The ROTC program aimed to realize the constitutional mandate of developing a strong
civilian base to supplement the professional military in the nation's defense system. It was
designed to initiate the ROTC trainees in the rudiments of soldier ship, instilling in them

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discipline and correct deportment. The objective of the said program was to train all able-bodied tertiary
students for military skills in case of war.

As a way to offer an alternative in neutralizing people's aversion to this military program during
the school year 2001-2002, ROTC was only made optional under the National Service Program (NSP),
conceiving the so-called Expanded ROTC (E-ROTC). The E-ROTC was characterized by deviation
from the rigid tactical training offering alternatives like rendering civil auxiliary sources .in the form of
helping maintain law and order, assisting socio-economic development projects and delivery of basic
health services or aiding in addressing local insurgency.

In view of the options, it gave the students the choice, among the following components:
Military Service (MS), Civic Welfare Service (CWS) and Law Enforcement Service (LES).

Many, if not all of the higher education institutions, found the enforcement Of NSP confusing
and unmanageable though. Hence, in December 2001, the NSTP Act, envisioned to address public
clamor for reforms in the ROTC and NSP Programs, was signed into law by then President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo as an aggressive modality toward making the former national service training that is
military in nature, relevant to the changing needs of the time.

The main objective of NSTP is to stress the significant role played by youth, male and female
alike, in the task of developing our nation via national service training. As such, it aims to develop the
youth to become civic or military leaders and volunteers through a modified, re-structured and
reinforced training package who could be called upon by the nation in cases their services are needed
and in the event of disasters or emergencies.

Compared with ROTC, the NSTP Act ensured that three components—Civic Welfare Training
Service (CWTS), Literacy Training Service (LTS) and Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC)—are
given the same and equal implementation in educational institutions. Moreover, it defined the different
NSTP components, the duration of the training, coverage and others.

The non-military program components of NSTP -- the CWTS and LTS -- are committed to the
realization of the following objectives:

• strengthen the values and traits of the youth;

• improve their skills and knowledge on various endeavors;
• develop their interest in community service; and
• make them responsible for peace and development to ensure harmony and
growth in the Filipino communities.

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 Activity

Activity on the Evolution and Development of Citizenship Training in the Philippines

Name: __________________________________________________Section Code: ____________

Use a diagram to illustrate a timeline that will explain the legal bases and chronological order of
events as basis for the passage of the R.A. 9163 (NSTP Act of 2001).

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 Rubrics

Category (20 pts) (15-19 pts) (10-14 pts) (9 pts or below)

Content/ Facts were accu- Facts were accu- Facts were accu- Facts were often
Facts rate for all events rate for almost all rate for most inaccurate for
reported on the events reported on (around 75%) of events reported
timeline the timeline the events report- on the timeline
ed on the time-
line
Graphics All graphics are All graphics are Some graphics Several graphics
effective and bal- effective, but are effective and are not effective
anced with text there appear to be their use is bal-
use too few or too ance with text
many use
Readability The overall ap- The overall ap- The timeline is The timeline is
pearance of the pearance of the relatively reada- difficult to read
timeline is pleas- timeline is some- ble
ing and easy to what pleasing and
read easy to read
Date An accurate, An accurate, com- An accurate date Dates are inac-
complete date has plete date has has been includ- curate and/or
been included for been included for ed for almost missing for sev-
each event almost every every event eral events
event
Require- The timeline con- The timeline con- The timeline The timeline
ments tained 8 events tained at least 6-7 contained at least contained fewer
related to the top- events related to 4-5 events relat- than 3 events
ic being studied. the topic being ed to the topic
studied being studied

Total Score:
________________

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 REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9163

AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE NATIONAL SERVICE TRAINING PROGRAM

(NSTP) FOR TERTIARY LEVEL STUDENTS, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7077 AND PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1706, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES
Republic Act 9163 was enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of
the Philippines in Congress assembled.
SEC. 1. Short Title. — This Act shall be known as the “National Service Training
Program (NSTP) Act of 2001”.
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is hereby affirmed the prime duty of the government
to serve and protect its citizens, In turn, it shall be the responsibility of all citizens to
defend the security of the State and in fulfillment thereof, the government may require
each citizen to render personal, military or civil service.
Recognizing the youth’s vital role in nation-building, the State shall promote civic
consciousness among the youth and shall develop their physical, moral, spiritual,
intellectual and social well-being. It shall inculcate in the youth patriotism, nationalism,
and advance their involvement in public and civic affairs.
In pursuit of these goals, the youth, the most valuable resource of the nation, shall
be motivated, trained, organized and mobilized in military training, literacy, civic welfare
and other similar endeavors in the service of the nation.
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following are hereby
defined as follows:
(a) “National Service Training Program (NSTP)” is a program aimed at enhancing
civic consciousness and defense preparedness in the youth by developing the ethics of
service and patriotism while undergoing training in any of its three (3) program
components. Its various components are specially designed to enhance the youth’s active
contribution to the general welfare.
(b) “Reserve-Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC)” is a program institutionalized
under Sections 38 and 39 of Republic Act No. 7077 designed to provide military training
to tertiary level students in order to motivate, train, organize and mobilize them for
national defense preparedness.
(c) “Literacy Training Service” is a program designed to train students to become
teachers of literacy and numeracy skills to school children, out of school youth, and other
segments of society in need of their service.
(d) “Civic Welfare Training Service” refers to programs or activities contributory
to the general welfare and the betterment of life for the members of the community or the
enhancement of its facilities, especially those devoted to improving health, education,
environment, entrepreneurship, safety, recreation and morals of the citizenry.
(e) “Program component” shall refer to the service components of the NSTP as
enumerated on Section 4 of this Act.
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SEC. 4. Establishment of the National Service Training Program. — There is hereby
established a National Service Training Program (NSTP), which shall form part of the
curricula of all baccalaureate degree courses and of at least two (2)-year technical-
vocational courses and is a requisite for graduation, consisting of the following service
components:
(1) The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), which is hereby made optional
and voluntary upon the effectivity of this Act;
(2) The Literacy Training Service; and
(3) The Civil Welfare Training Service.
The ROTC under the NSTP shall instill patriotism, moral virtues, respect for rights
of civilians, and adherence to the Constitution, among others. Citizenship training shall be
given emphasis in all three (3) program components.
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Technical Education and
Skills Development Authority (TESDA), in consultation with the Department of National
Defense (DND), Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC),
Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations of the Philippines (COCOPEA)
and other concerned government agencies, may design and implement such other program
components as may be necessary in consonance with the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 5. Coverage. — Students, male and female, of any baccalaureate degree course or at
least two (2)-year technical-vocational courses in public and private educational
institutions shall be required to complete one (1) of the NSTP components as requisite for
graduation.
SEC. 6. Duration and Equivalent Course Unit. — Each of the aforementioned NSTP
program components shall be undertaken for an academic period of two (2) semesters.
In lieu of the two (2)-semester program for any of the components of the NSTP, a
one (1) summer program may be designed, formulated and adopted by the DND, CHED
and TESDA.
SEC. 7. NSTP Offering in Higher and Technical-Vocational Educational Institutions.
— All higher and technical-vocational institutions, public and private, must offer at least
one of the program components: Provided, That State universities and colleges shall offer
the ROTC component and at least one other component as provided herein: Provided,
further, That private higher and technical-vocational education institutions may also offer
the ROTC if they have at least three hundred and fifty (350) cadet students.
In offering the NSTP whether during the semestral or summer periods, clustering
of affected students from different educational institutions may be done, taking into
account logistics, branch of service and geographical considerations. Schools that do not
meet the required number of students to maintain the optional ROTC and any of the NSTP
components shall allow their students to cross-enroll to other schools irrespective of
whether or not the NSTP components in said schools are being administered by the same
or another branch of service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), CHED and
TESDA to which schools are identified.

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SEC. 8. Fees and Incentives. — Higher and technical-vocational institutions shall not collect
any fee for any of the NSTP components except basic institution fees, which shall not be more
than fifty percent (50%) of what is currently charged by schools per unit.
In the case of the ROTC, the DND shall formulate and adopt a program of assistance
and/or incentive to those students who will take the said component.
The school authorizes concerned, the CHED and TESDA shall ensure that group
insurance for health and accident shall be provided for students enrolled in any of the NSTP
components.
SEC. 9. Scholarships. — There is hereby created a Special Scholarship Program for qualified
students taking the NSTP which shall be administered by the CHED and TESDA. Funds for this
purpose shall be included in the annual regular appropriations of the CHED and TESDA.
SEC. 10. Management of the NSTP Components. — The school authorities shall exercise
academic and administrative supervision over the design, formulation, and adoption and
implementation of the different NSTP components in their respective schools: Provided, That in
case a CHED- or TESDA-accredited non-government organization (NGO) has been contracted
to formulate and administer a training module for any of the NSTP components, such academic
and administrative supervision shall be exercised jointly with that accredited NGO: Provided,
further, That such training module shall be accredited by the CHED and TESDA.
The CHED and TESDA regional offices shall oversee and monitor the implementation of
the NSTP under their jurisdiction to determine if the trainings are being conducted in
consonance with the objectives of this Act. Periodic reports shall be submitted to the CHED,

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About NSTP

1. What is the National Service Training Program Law?

The National Service Training Program (NSTP) Law as embodied in Republic Act
9163 is a program aimed at enhancing civic consciousness and defense preparedness in the
youth by developing the ethics of service and patriotism while undergoing training in any of
its three program components specifically designed to enhance the youth's active contribution
to the general welfare.

2. What are the program components of the NSTP?

a. The Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) is designed to provide military

training to tertiary level students in order to motivate, train, organize, and mobilize
them for national defense preparedness.

b. The Literacy Training Service (LTS) is designed to train the students to teach
literacy and numeracy skills to school children, out-of-school youth and other
segments of society in need of their services.

c. The Civic Welfare Training Service (CWTS) refers to activities contributory to the
general welfare and the betterment of life for the members of the community. It also
refers to the enhancement of its facilities, especially those developed to improving

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 health, education, environment, entrepreneurship, safety, recreation and moral of the
citizenry and other social welfare services.
3. Who shall take the NSTP?
All incoming freshmen students, male and female, enrolled in any baccalaureate and in at
least two-year technical- vocational or associate courses, are required to complete one NSTP
component of their choice as a graduation requirement.

4. How will the NS TP be taken up?

Each of the NSTP components shall be undertaken for an academic period of two
semesters and credited for three units per semester with 54 to 90 training hours per
semester.

5. What if the NSTP cannot be taken up during the regular semester?

A one summer program in lieu of the two semester program may be designed,
formulated and adopted by the Department of National Defense (DND), Commission on
Higher Education (CHED), and Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA)
subject to the capability arid school and the AFP to handle the same.

6. What if the NSTP program component chosen by a student is not off

his/her school?
Schools that do not meet the required number of students in order to conduct a program
component or do not offer the component chosen by their students shall allow them to cross-
enrol to other schools irrespective of whether that school is under CHED or TESDA and for
ROTC, whether they are managed by different AFP branches of service.

These students, however, shall be subjected to the existing rules and regulations of their
original school and the accepting school.

7. Are currently-enrolled students covered by the NSTP?

Male students currently enrolled but have not taken any program component of the
previous Expanded ROTC (E-ROTC)/National Service Program (NSP) are covered by the
NSTP

8. Will a student who has completed all the academic requirements of his course
except ROTC be allowed to graduate?
A student who has completed all his academic requirements except for ROTC will be
allowed to graduate provided that he is a certified candidate by the school on or before the
effectivity of the NSTP which is March 23, 2002.

9. What if a male student has completed two semesters of E-ROTC/NSP?

He is deemed to have complied with the NSTP requirement.

10. What if a male student has only taken one (1) semester of Basic ROTC and
E-ROTC/NSP?
He shall take one more semester of any of the NSTP components to qualify for
graduation.

11. What will become of NSTP Graduates?

Graduates of the non-ROTC components? It shall belong to the National Service Reserve
Corps (NSRC) that could be tapped by the State for literacy and civic welfare activities.

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 Graduates of the ROTC component shall form only part of the AFP Citizen Armed Force,
subject to DND requirements.

12. How can a student continue to qualify for enlistment in the AFP Reserve Force?
He/she may qualify for enlistment in the AFP Reserve Force as long as he/she has
completed the two semesters of Basic ROTC.

13. How much fee will be charged for an NSTP component?

No fees shall be collected for any of the NSTP component except basic tuition fees,
which should not be more than 50% of the charges of the school per academic unit.

14. What student incentives can be provided by the NSTP?

The following incentives to students are to be provided when they take up NSTP:

A program of assistance/incentives for ROTC students from DND which will be in

accordance with existing laws and regulations and subject to the availability of funds.
School authorities concerned, CHED and TESDA shall ensure that health and accident
group insurances are provided to students enrolled in any of the NS TP components.
A special scholarship program for qualified NSTP shall be administered by CHED and
TESDA subject to the availability of funds.

15. Who is responsible for supervising the NSTP?

School authorities shall exercise academic and administrative supervision over the design,
formulation, adoption and implementation of the different NSTP components in their respective
schools.
In the case of ROTC, the school authorities and DND shall exercise joint supervision over
its implementation.

16. What lead agencies will monitor the implementation of the NSTP?
CHED Regional Offices, TESDA Provincial and District Offices and the DND-AFP,
through the major Service Reserve Commands and their ROTC Units, shall oversee if the
trainings conducted are in consonance with the Republic Act.

17. Is the NSTP available in all schools and universities?

All higher and technical vocational educational institutions shall be offering at least one of
the NSTP components, while State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) will offer the ROTC
component and at least one other NSTP component.

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