Cebu Province lowered the Philippine flag at the Cebu Provincial Capitol to honor National Artist for Literature Resil B. Mojares, who died two days after his 83rd birthday.
Gov. Pamela Baricuatro issued Executive Order No. 49, Series of 2026, on Monday, Sept. 7, directing the flag to be flown at half mast as the province mourned the Cebuano writer, historian, scholar and educator.
Mojares died on Saturday, Sept. 5, a day after celebrating his 83rd birthday.
Baricuatro’s order recognized Mojares’ contributions to preserving and promoting Cebuano and Visayan history, literature and culture. It also highlighted his role as founding director of the Cebuano Studies Center at the University of San Carlos, where he helped advance the study of Cebuano history, language, literature and culture.
Mojares received the Order of National Artists of the Philippines for Literature in 2018 for his contributions to Philippine literary and scholarly development.
Cebu Province Heritage Consultant Jose Eleazar “Jobers” Bersales remembered Mojares as a mentor, friend, neighbor and fellow student of history.
“All these and our Sunday breakfast tete-a-tetes are memories I will always cherish,” Bersales said. “With your sudden passing, Cebu has lost its most precious literary gem.”
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) also paid tribute to Mojares, describing his work in Philippine local studies as pioneering.
The commission noted that Mojares helped establish the Cebuano Studies Center in 1975 and produced six academic works that won National Book Awards. He also contributed to the Cebu Town History Project by writing the history of Cebu province.
Mojares also played a key role in the long running debate over the location of the First Easter Sunday Mass in the Philippines. From 2018 to 2021, he chaired an NHCP panel that assessed competing claims over the site.
The panel, later known as the Mojares Panel, reaffirmed Limasawa as the site of the 1521 Easter Sunday Mass.
“We extend our deepest condolences to his family, loved ones, colleagues, and the whole Filipino people in his passing. A true titan of local history has left us,” the NHCP said.
Mojares’ daughter, Anna Leigh Go Mojares, earlier announced his death and said the family was grateful to have spent his final day honoring and celebrating his life.
The provincial government cited Section 27(k) of the implementing rules of Republic Act No. 8491, or the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines, as the basis for lowering the flag. The provision allows the Philippine flag to be flown at half mast upon the death of recipients of national orders and decorations, subject to conditions under the law.
The Cebu Capitol flag was lowered as the province paid tribute to Mojares’ lasting contributions to literature, history, culture and scholarship.
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