San Jose de Buenavista: Simple wreath-laying ceremonies before the statue of the late Antique governor Evelio Javier at the EBJ Freedom Park in San Jose de Buenavista, Antique marked the commemoration of his 39th death anniversary on Tuesday.

According to Philippines News Agency, during the short program led by the Antique provincial government, Board Member Pio Jessielito Sumande Jr. said Javier's leadership symbolizes honesty and integrity. A separate ceremony was also held by the Javier family, led by his younger brother Exequiel and nephew Paolo, who both once served as Antique representatives to Congress.

Republic Act 7601, enacted on July 20, 1992, declared Feb. 11 of each year as a special non-working day in Aklan, Antique, Capiz, and Iloilo to commemorate Javier's death anniversary. In an interview, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Tre±as said it is fitting that there is a special holiday in Panay to remember the heroism of the former Antique governor.

'I think it is but fitting [that] he is given this special holiday because we in Panay should always remember that there were people at that time who stood up for their principles and were ready to die for them,' Mayor Tre±as said. He recounted that he and Javier were tasked to bring copies of the election returns of Iloilo and Antique to the central office of the Commission on Elections and the party copy to their headquarters in Manila during the 1985 snap elections. However, Javier opted to stay in Antique and instead sent a representative to deliver the returns.

Tre±as shared that he was informed upon arrival at their headquarters that Javier had been gunned down in Antique. 'I was so shocked. I was thinking if he only followed the schedule, he would have been in Manila, and I do not know, maybe he would still be alive,' he reflected. The city mayor recalled that during the snap elections, Javier would stay in their ancestral house in the Molo district each time he was in Iloilo.