Cadet not dismissed for being tardy but for lying, says PMA The public was sympathetic to the plight of Philippine Military Academy’s (PMA) Cadet First Class Aldrin Jeff Cudia when it was first reported that he had gotten kicked out for being late for class by two minutes.
The PMA now explains that Cudia was “found guilty by his peers of violating it and punished with dismissal, and not for tardiness,” reports Vincent Cabreza in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Here’s what happened according to the report: “Cudia was allegedly late for class, along with three other cadets. While the others admitted fault, Cudia claimed that he was late because the instructor of the previous class had asked him and his classmates to stay behind.” However, when Cudia’s tactical officer checked with the instructor in question, he was allegedly told that “there was no directive for the four cadets to stay” because “it was they who wanted to meet with the instructor.”
As such, Cudia faced the Honor Committee and was dismissed for violating the PMA Honor Code.
The report pointed out: “Cudia’s grades would have made him eligible for salutatorian of ‘Siklab Diwa’ Class of 2014, according to his sister, Avee. He is also the recipient of the Philippine Navy Saber as the top cadet to join the naval force.”
To be fair, Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista on Wednesday, Feb 19, ordered the PMA superintendent, Maj. Gen. Oscar Lopez, to reopen the case after Cudia’s sister posted a note detailing the cadet’s troubles on her Facebook page.
Lopez was quoted as saying that “the review would take its proper course and would not be hastened to coincide with the PMA graduation on March 16.”
Screengrab of a photo shared on Facebook
