Ben Madilynn
Hindi raw nagpatalo sa lungkot at takot si Marina Benipayo noong biglang arestuhin ang kanyang partner, ang aktor na si Ricardo Cepeda, noong October 2023 on charges of syndicated estafa.
Ayon sa former model and beauty queen na nakapanayam ng PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) via Instagram Messenger last September 20, 2024, hindi raw siya tumigil sa pagiging productive kasabay ng kanyang pakikipaglaban na inosente si Ricardo sa ibinibintang na kaso rito.
“Matibay kami ni Ricardo. Hindi ko din hininto yung pagiging productive ko. Kasi tayo naman, sa buhay naman natin, whatever will happen, pagka biglang may nangyari na hindi natin ini-expect, nagka-challenge tayo sa buhay at bagong struggles, it should not affect our productivity.
“It’s not my style to just dwell on self-pity. So I continued to work. I kept a positive mind, kept myself very productive. Yung live-sell ko halos hindi nga nila mahalata. In front of the camera, talagang I never gave up.
“‘Pag ganyan yung nangyayari sa isang loved one, the best that you can do really is keep on letting them know that you will always be there. Whether you’re a parent, a partner in life, kailangan talaga.”
Hindi rin naging biro ang mga naging sakripisyo ni Marina noong ilipat si Ricardo sa Cagayan Provincial Jail sa Tuguegarao City. Gumagawa ng paraan si Marina na mabisita si Ricardo on a weekly basis.
“From Quezon City nung na-detain si Ricardo, ‘tapos by December he went to Tuguegarao. We were in constant communication. I went there, I visited him every week. From April to August, mga twice a month kasi mahal din ang ticket ng eroplano. ‘Tapos everything that I was working for went to the plane tickets and what he needed.
“Nagmamahalan kami. So you know, you would really do it. If yung commitment ninyo is strong with one another, you won’t give up, di ba? I won’t give up.
“Talagang you would still, kahit nakakapagod and wow, nakakapagod talaga especially nung every week ako lumilipad. Tapos pagbalik ko, nagtatrabaho ko, ‘tapos lilipad na naman ako.
“With yung guidance naman talaga ni God, yun na lang talaga yung nagpapalakas sa akin. And kung napansin mo, I wasn’t noisy sa social media about anything that was happening. I was really quiet. Kasi I wanted to focus on Ricardo because alam ko na malungkot dun.”
ricardo just wants to rest
Noong nakalaya na nga raw si Ricardo after ma-detain for 11-months, nabawasan ang bigat na nararamdaman ni Marina dahil alam niyang marami ang parating nagdarasal at sumusuporta sa kanilang dalawa.
Ang maganda pa raw ay hindi na kailangan pang dumaan ng aktor sa kahit na anong physical or mental therapy.
“Ricardo is very strong-willed. Dahil sa mga napagdaanan namin pareho sa buhay. It was hard, of course, dumaan kami sa negative feelings of sadness, grief, despair, confusion. Pero kasi buhay naman namin, it wasn’t puro sagana, dumating din sa amin yung mga trials. So it was hard.
“So he’s fine. He was able to cope basta going through the normal processes. He made himself very productive and still very helpful especially sa mga ibang detainees doon. Noong umalis nga siya talaga nag-goodbye lahat sa kanya.
“As I’ve said, malakas naman ang will ni Ricardo, psychologically, spiritually, mentally. He’s a strong person. You go through the process of parang denial, shock, anger. Especially if you’re in that situation na bigla lang nangyayari sa ‘yo lahat yan. So wala naman treatment-treatment. Siguro talagang tulog, relaxation, and sunshine.”
Nang tanungin nga raw ni Marina kung ano ang gustong gawin ni Ricardo pag-uwi nito, ang sagot daw ng aktor ay gusto lang daw nitong magpahinga.
“Hindi siya makaisip pa ng anything. Sabi niya, ‘Right now, gusto ko lang magpahinga.’ Magpahinga kasi siyempre, I don’t think we can totally describe yung pinagdaanan ni Richard doon, how it was emotionally, mentally, psychologically, di ba?
“May mga tumatawag na. Pero ako din, first and foremost in my mind kahit may mga namimilit na mag-interview, sinabi ko, sorry kasi he really has to rest. It’s not like nag-out of the country siya ‘tapos pagbalik puwede na mag-interview.
“There are people to thank talaga na without them… sila yung naging support system namin habang nangyari kay Richard. And of course yung mga anak namin who are always there. People who continually prayed for us.”
how their children handled ricardo’s situation
Regarding sa mga anak nila ni Ricardo from their previous marriages, Marina made sure na tuloy lang sila sa kanilang normal na routine sa buhay kahit na alam niyang apektado ang mga ito sa mga nangyari.
“Siyempre, affected sila, nakakagulat kasi naiba lang ang mga buhay namin. Wala kaming alam tungkol sa mga batas. That was farthest from our minds and then it happened. So alam ko na they were also in shock and very, very, very worried.
“I told them, ‘Do not let what happened affect you or what you’re doing right now. Don’t let it stop your productivity. Ako na lang ang bahala. Ako na, let me do everything that we can. Ako na lang for Pops.’
“So yung work naman ng mga anak namin, home-based, stay-at-home jobs sila. So they didn’t really have to go out and tackle yung pinagsasasabi ng mga tao, if meron man. Yung isa lang, si Joshua lang malabas. Pero ano yan si Joshua kasi matapang yan, he defended Ricardo.
“Whatever happened did not affect yung daily lives nila. And I specifically told them not to let it affect them kasi matatapos din ito. It was something na parang na-off-rail lang talaga yung buhay namin with something that was unexpected. So okey naman sila. Na-guide naman nang husto.”
NO SPECIAL TREATMENT
Malaki ang pasasalamat ni Marina sa mga dasal at words of encouragement mula sa kanilang pamilya at mga kaibigan.
Marami raw kasing nakakakilala sa kanila bilang tahimik at simpleng mga tao. Kaya masakit para sa kanila ang mahusgahan sa social media.
“Kami naman ni Richard, tahimik lang kami. We don’t really go out, we don’t socialize that much kasi medyo mga homebody talaga kami. We love spending time together with our family but that’s it.
“Although may mga kilala kami, we didn’t want to approach them. May hiya kami.
“Kahit nangyari ito noong time na yan, nahiya kami. And we didn’t know who else to turn to. Kasi we really don’t know… we’re not really familiar with the justice system.
“So si Ricardo, alam niya, there was no special treatment. So talagang he chose, we chose to… alam namin naman kasi na wala talaga. So sige let’s see what happens.
“People know na hindi naman kami yung mayaman. We live humbly. Very simple lang yung buhay namin. So yun lang, nakakasakit lang minsan when some people assume. I hope that negativity just doesn’t happen.”
