Kris: My marriage is over

TV host-actress Kris Aquino is firm about her decision not to reunite anymore with husband, basketball star James Yap.
In a short statement issued by the law firm Marcos Ochoa Serapio and Tan, Kris’ lawyers said they have been asked by the youngest sister of President Noynoy Aquino to start legal proceedings to end her marriage to James.
The statement read: “Ms. Kris Aquino has recently announced that she has decided to end her marriage to Mr. James Yap and asked us to initiate the appropriate proceedings for the purpose. She believes that this is for the best interest of all concerned, especially her children. We shall take the necessary steps at the soonest possible time and request everybody to respect the privacy of the parties and let the legal process take its course.”
A copy of the statement was sent to Boy Abunda, close friend of Kris’ and co-host of the show The Buzz.
Kris left last July 8 for the US with sons Joshua and Baby James for a three-week vacation in Orlando, Florida.
“We're going to take a Disney cruise then go to Disneyworld. I think they are very excited. We're looking forward to the vacation,” said Kris, when interviewed by ABS-CBN North America News Bureau in Los Angeles before leaving for Orlando.
Kris will not be back in time for the first State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Aquino on July 26. she will be back in time for the first death anniversary of her mother, the late President Corazon Aquino, on August 1.
Last June 27, on her farewell appearance on The Buzz, the acknowledged Queen of All Media said her five-year marriage to James is over.
“Matagal naming sinubukan. James and I really tried to make this work. On my part, with finality, I can say ako ay sumuko na,” she said.
(Kris decided to leave The Buzz and another showbiz-oriented show, SNN: Showbiz News Ngayon, to spare her brother from negative publicity arising from what she might say on the shows.)
Kris said her decision to end the marriage was not a “spur of the moment.”
“Kung anuman ang dahilan why this marriage, on my part, I'm saying it's over. The only person I will owe an explanation to and the only person who can demand from me, 'Bakit kayo naghiwalay?,' is my son,” she added.

James won’t give up

A week after Kris’ revelation, James broke his silence and said that he will fight and do whatever it takes to save their marriage.
“I believe in the importance of having an intact family,” James said in a statement, written in Filipino, released to the media last July 1. “That’s why I will fight to keep my family with Kris intact, whatever happens.
“I know that every family encounters tests like these,” he said. “Kris and I have made it through such tests before and I don’t think that this would be the right time for us to surrender.”
James added: “Kris, we have gone through a lot of more serious problems than this one. I have kept quiet all these time out of respect for our family. I love you and my son and Josh (Aquino’s 14-year-old son by actor Philip Salvador) whom I have considered as my own. . . Another thing, I also promised Mom Cory that I will always take care of our family. Kris and I also swore to Mom Cory that we will never separate.”

No third party involved

Kris and her two sons left the couple’s Makati condominium and checked into a five-start hotel. According to sources, James himself packed his things and moved into a condo unit in Ortigas Center, Pasig City, because Kris didn’t want to come home while he was there.
Kris did not reveal the reason behind their separation but insisted that there was no third party involved. She said she is keeping quiet for the sake of Baby James, their three-year-old son.
“The worst thing I can do for Baby James is, when he's 7 or 8 years old, and mahanap niya sa YouTube ‘yong explanation kung bakit naghiwalay ang nanay at tatay niya. He deserves much more than that. He deserves to hear it only from me and only from James. Because in any separation, there are two sides to the story. And we owe it to him, James will owe it to him, that I will owe it to him to explain to him,” she said.

Big misunderstanding

It was on June 16 when Kris first admitted in public through her Twitter page that she and James, star player of B-Meg Derby Ace (formerly Purefoods) PBA basketball team, had a “big misunderstanding.”
Kris, who turned 39 last Feb. 14, is 11 years older than James. They were married in a civil ceremony on July 10, 2005.
This is not the first controversy to hound the celebrity couple. Kris made headlines early this year when she allegedly confronted a woman rumored to be James’ girlfriend. The incident forced Kris to move out of their home, only to return days later.
In 2007, they went through a rough time after James was rumored to have had a romantic affair with a receptionist at the Belo Medical Clinic.
In both instances, James denied the speculations.