Belo’s son apologizes for anti-Kho remarks

IN A MEDIA gathering yesterday to launch his latest film “Rakenrol,” TV and film director Quark Henares said he had already spoken with and apologized to his mother, Dr. Vicki Belo, over a statement he made earlier against her fiancé, Hayden Kho.

“I told her that I didn’t mean to hurt her. I just tried to explain how I feel about the issue. I didn’t mean to malign her,” the director said.

In a show biz talk program last week, Henares commented on his mother’s engagement to Kho. He issued a statement which went, “I’m not happy about it. In fact, I don’t think anyone outside the two are. But I love my mother and I value her happiness above everything. So, I will support her. I’ll still be keeping watch [over] Hayden though, and if he hurts her again, I think I really will have to kill him.”

Belo, called the “doctor to the stars” in show biz circles, publicly supported Kho when he battled controversies that ensued after his sex videos with actress Katrina Halili and other women were uploaded on the Internet in 2009.

Halili later sued Kho for violation of Republic Act No. 9262 or the Anti-Violence Act Against Women and Children of 2004.

Last year, the Professional Regulation Commission stripped Kho of his medical license after it found him guilty of “immorality, dishonorable and unethical conduct.”

Henares’ sister, Cristalle, said that her family knew about the engagement of her mother to Kho as early as six months ago but they decided to “keep it quiet as long as possible.”

She added that this allowed her to get used to the idea, saying, “I’m not very emotional about it anymore.”

At the same time, she defended her brother who, according to her, was just being protective of their mother. “My mom and dad (banker/businessman Atom Henares) split up when we were still young. Kuya has since become overly protective of our mom. Soon, he’s going to leave for the States to study and will not be back for two years. I guess he’s thinking, ‘I won’t be here to protect you if anything bad happens to you again.’ I think this makes him very emotional.”

Cristalle said no date had been set for the wedding which is not something she has discussed with her mother. “We just enjoy each other when we’re together. We chat, go belly dancing and baking. We don’t talk about him (Kho) because she knows maba-bad vibes lang ako. It’s a separate aspect of her life and I respect that.”