Six among the Top Ten of the graduating class of the Philippine Military Academy, Madasigon Class of 2023, come from the North and the South.
Those who made the Top Ten by rank are the following:
1. Cadet 1CL Warren D. Leonor, 22 years old, hails from Lipa City, Batangas and will be joining the Air Force. As the top graduate, he will be receiving the Presidential Saber and the Philippine Air Force Saber, among 13 more awards and plaques, including his cum laude recognition.
2. Cadet 1Cl Edmundo D. Logronio, 23 years old, from Manito, Albay, will be joining the Army. He will be the recipient of the Vice presidential Saber; the Philippine Army Saber and the Australian Defense Best Overall Performance Award, among others.
3. Cadet 1Cl Nicole B. Sarmiento, 22 years old, will receive the Secretary of National Defense Saber. She is from Butuan City, Agusan del Norte. She will be with the Army.
4. Cadet 1Cl Zhen Zhen S. Cayton, 23 years old, from Dupax del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya, was a college undergraduate before entering and excelling at the PMA, graduating in the dean’s list. She will be part of the Air Force.
5. Cadet 1Cl Rez Mark C. Cantor, 22 years old, from Bugallon, Pangasinan, 22 years old will be joining the Navy. Graduating cum laude, he will be awarded the Philippine Navy Saber and the Australian Defense Best Overall Performance Award.
6. Cadet 1Cl Rojan J. Macario, 21 years old, is from Talon- Talon, Zamboanga City. She is of Tausog and Igorot heritage and will be part of the Army. She is graudating as class salutatorian.
7. Cadet 1Cl Samuel S. Banac, 22 years old, will be part of the Air Force. He is from West Fairview, Quezon City. He has a record of finishing his high school with honors.
8. Cadet 1Cl Kimberly Kate R. Lawingan, 22 years old, is from Sadanga, Mt. Province and will be part of the Navy. She graduated from senior high school with honors.
9. Cadet 1Cl Rico Jay B. Fernandez, 21 years old is from Molave, Zamboanga del Sur will be joining the Navy. He will be receiving the Association of Generals and Flag Officers, Inc Award and the Department of Leadership Award.
10. Cadet 1 Cl. Arla Krish K. Bahingawan, 23 years old, will join the Air Force and will be awarded the Department of Humanities Plaque and Chief Justice Award. She is Tuwali fron Kiangan, Ifugao.
Cadet 1CL Warren D. Leonor said that a lot of his relatives are part of the Philippine Air Force and enlisted personnel and thus his early exposure. “As a child I was exposed to the military, especially with my father, who always brought me to his camp, as a previous instructor in basic military training. I was inspired watching the cadets develop themselves as future combatants,” he said. There is also his sister with whom he says is a give-and-take inspirational exchange. His sister is about to graduate in December from the Philippine Air Force Candidate School. “If she can do it, why can’t I,” he said.
But the strongest motivation is his childhood dream that never wavered. “I always wanted to be part of the Philippine Air Force. Everything about airplanes got my attention. Every airplane passing by our house always amazed me,” he said.
He said he was only about to tell his parents that he would be graduating on top of his class. He said however that while it is an exciting thing, he ranked first in his sophomore class and his parents would thus have a hint that he would make it again as a graduate.
Cadet 1Cl Rojan J. Macario traces her inspiration to be part of the military service to her parents who are both police officers, nursing graduates and now serving in the health care department of the police force. Macario says that while her four-year stay at the academy was very challenging, it never occurred to her to quit. “It has taught me to be responsible and to be able to adopt to the uniformed troop,” she said. Her father is an Igorot by ethnicity but they settled in Zamboanga, her mother’s province. But in her younger years, the family would vacation in Baguio where her father lived before. She saw the PMA as a kid and was since inspired to wear the PMA uniform one day. Fascinated by the long grey line parade, she longed to be part of the troop one day and calls it her long-held childhood dream.
Cadet 1 Cl. Arla Krish K. Bahingawan, like his colleague Leonor, will be joining the Air Force because it was always her dream to fly an airplane. “I joined the PMA because it would bring me one step closer to my dream of becoming a pilot of the Philippine Air Force,” she said.
She said her dream to fly in the skies started when she was in elementary. Her father is with the Philippine Army but she chose the Air Force as she feels her skills are better suited in this line of service.
Bahingawan, who is from Ifugao, said that the Cordillerans like her who joined the PMA had the advantage of being used to the weather and the natural strength and endurance that they acquired due to the mountainous terrain of the region.
Graduation day is tentatively set on May 21 but will be needing confirmation from Malacanang subject to the schedule of President Ferdinand “BongBong” Marcos Jr. Covid protocols will also be dictated by Malacanang but presentation of a complete vaccination record is expected or otherwise an antigen test 24 hours before entry to the academy grounds.