Gretchen reveals more sordid family secrets

The Barretto family feud is now a full-blown, take-no-prisoners war. The latest bloody battle, which is still not over, involves the results of a drug test on Claudine Barretto.

Claudine’s camp said she tested negative for 10 kinds of drugs. The test, according to Claudine’s side, which includes her parents, should silence her other siblings and husband Raymart Santiago who are claiming she had long been struggling with a drug problem. But Gretchen Barretto was not about to concede the battle. Her latest salvo was aimed not only at Claudine but at their parents as well.

In a statement she sent to PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) chief Joanne Maglipon, Gretchen started out: “I have suffered long and hard in silence all through the verbal, physical, financial and, most painful of all, emotional abuse from my very own parents.”

She went on to describe how their dad faked a heart attack to sneak Claudine into a hospital. She said that in January 2011, their father “pretended to have suffered a heart attack and confined himself in Medical City and got my sister-in-law, Connie, to call Claudine at 2 a.m. so she could go to the hospital.”

“However, that was just a ploy to get Claudine confined at the basement for her severe drug abuse and mental condition. My brother, Mito, and his wife Connie, their son John, Marjorie and my parents planned and witnessed the confinement.”

It looks as if Gretchen was retelling an episode from a telenovela. But wait, there’s more: “The following month, Claudine’s treatment for drug abuse was continued in a private clinic in Chana, Thailand.  After arriving back in the country, she had counseling with Mr. Dondi Ayuyao.

“Again, I would like to remind my father of a family meeting that he called Connie, JJ, Marjorie, John, and myself to attend at 3 p.m. on December 21, 2012 at Da-Ude Tea Place at the Fort. He said that he had just come from a meeting that morning with Ms. Eos Capistrano, a counsellor from White Plains who said Claudine needed to be confined at the basement 12-18 months minimum.”  

“And that it was a choice of confining her at the basement or seeing her in the morgue at the rate she’s going.”  

Gretchen did not spare words in heaping blame on their parents.“Sadly, we now recognize that any effort to help her was doomed to fail because my parents are not capable of dealing with the truth.  Another example of this is the drug test result they recently showed to the press.” 

“We did not reject our parents. They rejected us.”

Never one to be denied the last word, Claudine posted this on her Instagram account last week: “Sana matapos na paninira ng ibang tao. Dis s for my Dad & Mom my Friends & My Fans who i call my Frends & esp for my Kids Sabina & Santino. sa lahat ng nagdadasal @ d humusga sakin Maraming salamat po. sa mga hinusgahan ako naintindihan ko po kayo. sana ngayon mabago na yung tingin nyo sakin. god bless u all.”  Compared to the Barrettos, the Kardashians are one happy family.

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Now that Sarah Geronimo has ended her stint as a mentor in “The Voice of the Philippines,” expect her to concentrate on preparing for her groundbreaking concert, “Perfect 10,” in November. Groundbreaking because there will be two “Perfect 10” concerts.

The show was scheduled for November 15 at the Araneta Coliseum. But tickets quickly sold out. Viva Entertainment big boss Vic del Rosario decided to hold a second show on Nov. 30 at the Mall of Asia Arena. Tickets for the Nov. 30 concert are still available.