Manila: Fifty-two couples from Antique's capital town benefited from the free mass wedding in this capital town on Wednesday. San Jose de Buenavista Mayor Paul Joseph Untaran, who officiated the mass wedding held at the Binirayan Gymnasium, told the couples to be faithful to each other despite the challenges. 'Marriage is not a bed of roses, but is a lifetime commitment of the couple to love each other,' Untaran said.

According to Philippines News Agency, the local government unit (LGU) prepared each couple a wedding cake, lunch for their sponsors and guests, and a photo-booth for picture-taking. San Jose de Buenavista Municipal Registrar Ma. Fe Salvani noted that the mass wedding is the first under the term of Untaran, who was elected mayor only in May this year. The mayor decided to hold a mass wedding after realizing that many couples in their municipality have not officially registered their marriage. 'We had been preparing for this mass wedding since October,' she said.

Sonie and Veronica Jordan, one of the couples, stated they had been together for the past 27 years, and they are happy to be married officially. Veronica mentioned it never crossed their minds to get married because they were busy and due to financial reasons. Meanwhile, 28-year-old Daniel Altejos, who works as a tricycle driver, said that he and his wife have been together for the past 10 years. 'We decided to be married legally because we want our four children to be legitimized,' he said. Their eldest child is eight years old, while their youngest is two months old.