Brawner is nat’l TOPS awardee

By Joseph B Zambrano

BAGUIO CITY -- Cordillera born, bred and schooled Col. Romeo Brawner Jr., is one of the  awardees for this year’s The Outstanding Philippine Soldiers (TOPS).

The TOPS is annual recognition program  of  the Metrobank Foundation, Inc.  and the Rotary Club of Makati Metro, for the members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), that honors and recognizes their dedication, bravery, professionalism  and  sacrifices in the military service.

Brawner, son of the late Justice Romeo Brawner Sr. and Dr. Lenora Fe Brawner,  is a member of  the Philippine Military Academy “Makatao”  class of 1989  graduating No. 2 .

Brawner was once the spokesperson of the Philippine Army and then later on of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

During these assignments, he projected a healthy image of the Filipino soldier as a protector of the Filipino people who respects and fights for their human rights.

Upon graduation from PMA, he joined the Philippine Army serving as platoon leader in Nueva Ecija.

Later, he trained with the Special Forces and became Company Commander of the 6th Special Forces Company that operated in Agusan Norte, Agusan Sur, Surigao Sur and Davao, all in Mindanao.

He also was the Battalion Commander of the 2nd Special Forces Battalion that operated in Samar, Leyte, Bohol and Cebu in the Visayas. 

During his stint as Battalion Commander, he co-developed with Governor Edgar Chatto of Bohol, a strategy for counter-insurgency called the Prosperity Program, that combined the Bayanihan Team concept of the AFP and the Purok Power Movement of the Province of Bohol.

In this strategy, several stakeholders from the local government, the armed forces, the police, the academe, the church and the private sector, cooperate and collaborate to address issues at the Purok level to alleviate poverty and prevent the resurgence of insurgency in these areas. Because of the success of this concept in Bohol, it is now being adapted in the overall AFP Campaign against insurgency.

Brawner has two masters degrees, a Master of Science degree in Information Management from the Ateneo de Manila University and a Master of Business Administration with focus on Management of Technology from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand.

He was also an exchange student to the European School of Management in Oxford, United Kingdom. In 2011, he was invited by US Ambassador Harry Thomas as  the lone representative of the Philippines to the prestigious US International Visitor Leadership Program that focused on Foreign Policy.

           

Brawner is married to a Baguio lass, the former Melody Valeros, his classmate in UP Baguio High School, and now a Public Relations consultant of the John Hay Management Corporation. They have three children, Kiele, 19, Romeo III, 18 and Zuri, 6.