The persistent rumor linking Caloocan City Councilor Marjorie Barretto (photo) to a married Metro Manila mayor is back in blind items (dignified by a broadsheet, not The STAR, with a front-page teaser) to the effect that Marjorie, 1) was given a P15-million house by the mayor and 2) she’s four-months pregnant (by the mayor).
The rumor cropped up just a few weeks after Marjorie’s marriage to former Caloocan City Councilor Dennis Padilla was annulled. Dennis’ first marriage to another woman was reportedly not yet annulled when he married Marjorie with whom he has three children. That was one of the grounds for Marjorie’s petition for annulment.
Through her spokesperson, Marjorie issued the following denial:
1). ‘The house Marjorie and her children are staying in is the same house given to her by her sister Gretchen, worth P4.5 million and not P15 million. Marjorie said that the mayor hasn’t given her a house.’
2). ‘Marjorie said that she’s not pregnant. She added that a condition like that cannot be hidden for long.’
Asked if Marjorie and the mayor have a ‘special relationship,’ the spokesperson said, ‘No comment.’
Anyway, only time will tell. Truth will prevail, as The STAR blurb says. — Ricky Lo