Benjamin Madrigal is a product of the University of the Philippines Los Baños. He graduated in 1980 before entering the Philippine Military Academy in 1981. He is a member of the Philippine Military Academy "Sandiwa" Class of 1985, and also attended various courses locally and abroad, such as the Infantry Officer Advance Course, and Special Security and Intelligence Course, in the AFP Command and General Staff College, ranking 1st in his class; the Forward Observer Course in Manly, Australia; and the Military and Peacekeeping Operations in Accordance with the Rule of Law in Newport, Rhode Island. He holds a Master Degree of Management Studies at the University of New South Wales in Australia, and earned his Master of Public Administration in the Philippine Christian University. He was also a member of the Board of Directors, Philippine Army Provident Fund, Philippine Army Officers’ Club Council, Philippine Army Golf Club Council, AFP Financial Institutions Accreditation Board, PMA Alumni Association, Inc. Mother Board, became the President of the Philippine-Australian Defense Scholars’ Association, Inc,, Vice President of the PMAAAI – Philippine Army Chapter, and the Manager of the Philippine Army Officers’ Club, as well as the President of the PMAAAI Eagle Fraternal Chapter .
Military Career
After graduating in 1985, he spent most of his career deployed in Mindanao, and led various units in both the Philippine Army and the AFP, such as the 26th Infantry Battalion of the 4th Infantry Division, and the 701st Infantry Brigade of the 10th Infantry Division. He is known to be focused, highly regarded, deliberate, and having "steep standards". He also served as the Head Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff, became Philippine Army Chief of Staff, became the Head of the Army Chief Management Fiscal Office, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans, J5; responsible for overall war planning operations. He also led 2 infantry divisions ; the 10th Infantry Division, where he served as both commander and assistant commander; and the 4th Infantry Division. He also served as the commander of the AFP Southern Luzon Command, and the AFP Eastern Mindanao Command, before being appointed as the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines on December 12, 2018, succeeding his classmate, General Carlito Galvez Jr.. He earned his fourth star and was promoted to the rank of General on January 10, 2019. He retired from military service on September 24, 2019, after serving more than 9 months in his post, where he was replaced by his classmate, General Noel Clement.
Known by his peers as "Benjie", Madrigal was born and raised in the resort town of Bayan, Los Baños, Laguna. He is married to Gemma Madrigal and they have four children.
