LtGen RONNIE S. EVANGELISTA is a competent combat officer of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) “Sinagtala” Class of 1986. Belonging to the upper quartile of his class, LTGEN EVANGELISTA is an officer par excellence. His commitment to excellence, both in the academe and in the military service, is proof of his outstanding dedication to the noble profession of arms.

LtGen EVANGELISTA’s tremendous potential for success started early on in his pre-commissionship days. He graduated school from San Jose Elementary School in 1976 and entered high school at the Roosevelt College where he graduated in 1980. He took up a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree at the University of Sto. Tomas and it was during his second year, in 1982, where he finally decided to take up the challenge of the Philippine Military Academy.

LtGen EVANGELISTA believes that the limit of what an individual can achieve is his imagination. For this reason, he did not allow himself to be restricted in pursuing higher educational and training goals that further honed him into a well-rounded officer. He finished his Command and General Staff Course at the AFP Command and General Staff College in 2004. In 2005, he obtained his Masters’ Degree in Public Administration from the National College of Business Administration. Aside from being Scout Ranger and Special Forces qualified, he also obtained the Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course (Green Beret) at the John F. Kennedy special Warfare Center and School in Fort Bragg, USA. He was the first Filipino graduate of the course to be given the Yarborough Knife, a combat field knife, which serves as a link to the brotherhood of unconventional warriors, in the signing the pages of an illustrious history, shared only by a select few. His long list of educational achievements is augmented by his further schooling at the National Defense University in USA. In 2008, LTGEN EVANGELISTA finished his Joint Transition Course and Joint Professional Military Education Course.

Early on in his career, he commanded the Light Reaction Battalion, the counter-terrorist unit of the AFP, and he also commanded the Special Forces Regiment (Airborne), the unit that specializes on unconventional warfare. He later became the Commander of Army Special operations Command (SOCOM) which includes the Special Forces Regiment, the Scout Ranger Regiment, and the Light Reaction Regiment. He is known to the members of the AFP not only as an exceptional combat officer and a Special Forces operative, but also, and more importantly, as a brilliant strategist who employed military triad operations, integrating military intelligence and information operations to the critical areas of combat operations.

One of these significant assignments was when he was tasked to command the 6th Special Forces Battalion (SFBN) where he was able to lead his men against insurgents in the province of Bohol. Under his direction, the Mass Base Operation concept was operationalized. Such strategy of unconventional warfare which focuses on integrating Psyops, combat operations, and intelligence in partnership with local government units eventually won the entire Bohol islands, declaring it free from agitations and attacks by the New Peoples’ Army (NPA).

LtGen EVANGELISTA also operated in the different regional units. Noteworthy of these assignments is his stint as his stint as the Deputy Commander of the Eastern Mindanao Command, which was then under the leadership of LtGen REY LEONARDO GUERRERO. At the same time, LtGen EVANGELISTA also commanded the Joint Task Force Haribon which has operational control over Joint Task Force Davao. His appointment as the first Commander of the JTF Haribon came at a very challenging time when there was a compelling need to integrate and strengthen the security of Davao and its neighboring towns and provinces. He later became the Commander of the Civil Relations Service, AFP, where it was his idea and spearheading that the “Support our Troops Campaign” was borne at the height of the Marawi siege. It was a means to generate popular support for the troops operating to liberate Marawi. Thus, the campaign significantly contributed to the AFP’s highest approval rating in the Social Weather Stations Survey.

As he spent with a number of years with the Special Operations from the Company, Battalion, and Regiment levels, LtGen EVANGELISTA espouses the highest standards of military professionalism, discipline, and integrity. With his diverse experience in SOCOM, he became the first commander of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Special Operations Command (AFPSOCOM) where all special operations of the AFP are placed under one operational command.

Aside from this combatant nature, LtGen EVANGELISTA is also a prolific writer. He authored the Special Forces Manual which has been promulgated and is still being used as one of the key doctrines of the AFP to this day. Further. LtGen EVANGELISTA is also an inventor. He invented three marksmanship training systems that were given patents by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHIL) through the endorsement of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). These are the Simultaneous Moving Automated Random Target System (SMART), Field Marksmanship Training System (FMTS), and the Pneumatic Marksmanship Training System (PMTS).

His integrity and work performance as an officer who is excellent in all three aspects of triad operations are distinguished by his numerous awards and recognitions, such as Military Merit Medals, Bronze Cross Medal, Silver Wing Medal, Distinguished Service Stars, and other badges and commendations.

Typical of a war-fighter, LtGen EVANGELISTA is a self-professed shy and silent type whose verbal acumen is heard only when required. He would also rather stay out of the limelight. These defining characteristics, along with his rich and comprehensive experience, eventually forged the PMA-Superintendent-material in him. Today, not only is his leadership relished by the combatant special units of the AFP but is also admired by the Corps of Cadets, the future generations of the AFP. His position as the Superintendent Philippine Military Academy is crucial as it defined, in all means the future of the Academy. A huge responsibility was given to him to sustain the gains of the past in order to enable the Academy to thrive and survive the ever changing educational and military landscapes, His leadership as SPMA centered on ensuring the welfare of the cadets, first and foremost. Paramount to him is the emphasis given on building cadets character, and improving all services to ensure that they are given nothing short of the quality education and training necessary for coding the future leaders of the nation.

LtGen EVANGELISTA is happily married to Jeanny Tadena and they are blessed with three sons: Kevin, Dave, and Bill.