Gel says goodbye to her Compañero

The death of Sen. Rene Cayetano (due to gastric cancer and not to complications of the liver transplant he had in the US) came as a shock to many people, even if many of them, us, saw the Senator looking so gaunt (a mere shadow of his robust self) on national television days before he died.

One of those deeply affected by the Senator’s death is Gel Santos-Relos, his co-host in the ABS-CBN radio-TV program Compañero y Compañera. Gel quit her job at ABS-CBN two years ago and is now based in Minnesota, USA, with her husband and children.

Gel e-mailed a letter to Funfare. Here it is:

Dear Ricky,

I feel so sad. I regret not having lifted the phone and given him a call soon enough. I regret not having mailed a letter soon enough... maybe because I thought and believed he was a fighter as he had always been and that he would still battle against death. But just this morning (Tuesday, June 24), I got an e-mail from San Miguel’s Mon Santiago that my dear friend, our Compañero, THE Compañero, has passed away.

I feel so much pain and loss as all of the other people whose lives he had touched must be grieving right now. How privileged I have been to have met and known the man.

It was exactly around this time some nine years ago when Atty. Rene Cayetano started guesting in my radio program over DZMM. We actually met through a family friend in Alabang Golf and Country Club. I sold him some golf shares; I was then doing real estate part-time.

It was then that I invited him to guest in my program once in a while as my expert lawyer resource person. During this time, he was already doing some legal education program with his Pecabar lawyers over Bob Garon’s radio station.

When Freddie Garcia, our ABS-CBN president, who also happens to be Atty. Cayetano’s neighbor in Ayala-Alabang, asked him to join on board DZMM once a week, Atty. Cayetano said he had already been guesting in my radio program and that he wanted to work with me.

Hence, Compañero y Compañera was born. It started as a once-a-week special in my program Relos Reports. He would come in every Monday for a live broadcast, and then I invited people to write in their problems and questions and the response had been phenomenal. And so that started the "letter reading" portion everyday and Atty. Cayetano, THE Compañero ng Bayan, would go live on the air to answer the letters and give legal advice whatever part of the globe he might be.

He would always call and give his special kind of public service. We also pioneered on radio the highly-rated and awarded radio drama Compañero y Compañera, The Drama which dramatized the problem situation written in by a listener and then at the end of the program, Compañero would give legal advice and legal education on the issue illustrated in the drama.

Yes, not many people knew that during the time we were doing the radio program together, he never received nor asked for a single centavo from ABS-CBN and insisted that he wanted to do this program to help the Filipino masses. His mission was to "humanize" the law and to make the masses understand, appreciate and live the laws of the country, helping them to fight for their rights and respecting the rights of others, recognizing the importance of fulfilling one’s obligation and responsibilities to help maintain order, peace and harmony in the family, community and society.

Because of the success of our radio program, Compañero y Compañera became a TV program in 1997, until the inevitable happened. Politics lured Atty. Cayetano and gave him the opportunity to serve the Filipinos more. In 1998, he was catapulted to the Senate, landing No. 2 in the polls.

The loss that I feel now is like losing a member of my family, for RLC was like a family to me. He was the ninong of my daughter Katrina and had been there for me and my family during rough times. Oh, he was a good friend... a friend who would give so much of himself without asking for anything in return.

My staff – especially May, Shiela, Gladys, Fiona, Jasmin, Cynthia and Christine – share these great wonderful memories of Compañero. We had been privileged to get to know the Compañero and had shared a lot of laughter and dreams with him. We grew in wisdom because of him, we grew in compassion because of his cause.

How I wish I am in the Philippines right now to condole with his bereaved family members who have been our family friends, too. My condolences to his wife Sandy; children Pia, Allan Peter, Ren-Ren and Lino; and his grandchildren Maxine and Nadine.

We will me miss our dear Compañero but we know he is more peaceful in heaven now. His memories will stay with all of us. His legacy will live on in the lives of all the people he had touched, the people whose lives have been better because of him.

Goodbye, Compañero. So long!

Let us pray for his soul; let us pray for his family.

Sincerely,
Gel Santos Relos

Ciara Sotto: Did she or did’t she?

The startling news (bannered by one tabloid) came out as a blind item although the young actress referred to was easily identifiable.

Suicidal aktres ipinagpalit ng BF, headlined the Abante Tonite, reporting that the young actress, who comes from a buena familia and whose parents (Sen. Tito Sotto and Helen Gamboa) are from showbiz, was so despondent and depressed after she was dumped by her equally young actor-boyfriend in favor of his TV loveteam-mate (obviously referring to John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo, the popular loveteam of ABS-CBN’stop-rated soap Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay).

According to the blind item (stars involved were later identified in radio programs although in an interrogative manner – you know, si Ciara Sotto ba yon!?! ), the young actress drank a bottle of Lysol along with several sleeping pills because she couldn’t accept the reason for her actor-boyfriend’s decision to break up with her – yes, he reportedly junked her to preserve his TV romance and therefore enhance his career.

Now, did she or didn’t she – try to commit suicide, that is?

Funfare called up Helen Gamboa about the news item and Helen was shocked to learn that the unfortunate incident was all over the tabs and the radio.

What happened, said Helen, was that Ciara came home a few days ago dead tired from taping (Buttercup, one of her shows on ABS-CBN, the other being A.S.A.P. Mania). Since she couldn’t sleep, Ciara decided to take two pieces of Dormicum (sleeping pills). There was no effect, so Ciara took one more. Several hours later, her sister Apple found Ciara groggy and rushed her to the nearby Cardinal Santos Medical Center where Ciara was confined for one day.

"That was about it," said Helen. "I never suspected that the incident would be blown up that way. Why should my daughter kill herself for a man?"

Ciara is up and about and has, in fact, reported yesterday for the taping of Buttercup.

Asked if Ciara and John Lloyd did break up, Helen said, "Ganyan naman sila. Galit, bati; galit, bati. I advised them not to take things seriously. Mga bata pa sila. But their off-and-on relationship is, I think, normal among people their age."

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