Iggy Arroyo’s wife goes to court

EMPTY-HANDED Alicia “Aleli” Arroyo, estranged wife of Rep. Ignacio “Iggy” Arroyo, arrives at Ninoy Aquino International Airport on a flight from London without the lawmaker’s body. RODEL ROTONI/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—“I don’t speak to a mistress who stole my husband.”

This was the declaration of Alicia Rita Arroyo, wife of Representative Ignacio Arroyo, before a Quezon City judge as he ponders whether to grant an order in her favor or for her late husband’s partner, Grace Ibuna.

Her sharp words were in reply to a question from Ibuna’s lawyer, Leonard de Vera, on whether she had spoken to the mistress about her husband’s state of health before his death.

Judge Eleuterio Bathan of Regional Trial Court Branch 92 presided over a four-hour hearing, which ended late Thursday afternoon, of an application for a temporary restraining order.

Alicia had been under constant grilling on the witness stand for three days since filing an urgent petition for custody of the late Arroyo’s remains last Monday.

In her pleading, she cited provisions of the Revised Administrative Code and the Civil Code which designate the surviving spouse as having the duty to bury his or her deceased spouse.

Aside from a TRO and injunction, Alicia also urged the court to grant her custody of the body of her estranged husband, who died of a liver disease last January 26 in London.

Five women lawyers from the Kapunan, Garcia and Castillo Law Offices represent her in the civil case.

Alicia went to London but failed to bring home Arroyo’s body allegedly due to Ibuna’s maneuverings.

De Vera, Ibuna’s counsel, however, cited two 2009 notarized documents executed by the deceased— an “advanced healthcare directive” and a declaration of trust—which did not mention Alicia’s name at all.

The “advanced healthcare directive” named Ibuna and a daughter, Bernardina Arroyo Tantoco, as his agents should doctors declare him to be “no longer able to make his own decisions.”

The declaration of trust also named Tantoco, his daughter by first wife Marilyn Jacinto, as a trustee who will hold his estate  in trust until Ibuna’s death.

On Thursday, Alicia revealed that her husband told her some time in the late 1990s that he wished his funeral wake to be held in their home.

He even tried to purchase a cemetery plot at the Loyola Memorial Park where his father and in-laws are  buried, she added.

The Arroyos have been estranged since 2006, when the former lawmaker left the couple’s conjugal home to live with Ibuna, who was with him in his final moments.

Iggy and Alicia—“Aleli” to those close to her—were married in 1994 and lived together for 12 years with the wife saying she took care of her husband who was stricken with bone and liver ailments.

During cross examination on Thursday, the wife said her husband underwent hip replacement as a result of a rare bone disease. This was apart from his liver problem.

Because of her spontaneity in answering questions, even with the lawyers’ pending objections,  the court had to remind her quite a few times not to be too quick in replying.

“I would even open doors for him, and he told me, ‘You’re still treating me like a baby. I’m actually well already’,'” she said, describing how she had looked after her husband.

She said she would also talk with two doctors, one at St. Luke’s Medical Center and the other one based in San Francisco, on Arroyo’s behalf as he was busy as a lawmaker.

But after Arroyo left her in June 2006, she said, she could no longer look after Iggy who was already with Ibuna.

Left with their 14-year-old daughter, Alicia got updates on her husband’s state of health from others who would approach her with the information, she said.

She cited a certain Mayor Plamares, who told her three years ago that Iggy  was in London seeking treatment for his liver problem.

According to the mayor, her husband had bought an apartment in London.

“He also told me that no one can accompany him but Grace Ibuna,” Alicia told the court, claiming that Ibuna was “domineering” in affairs concerning Iggy.

De Vera asked if she was able to confirm such reports, to which the wife responded that her husband had stopped visiting their daughter.

“And I know for a fact that Grace prevented him,” Alicia said, prompting the lawyer to ask if she had communicated with her husband’s partner.

After answering that she didn’t speak to the woman who stole her husband, Alicia added: “I have proof. I can tell you.”

During an activity of her daughter in late 2011, she recalled receiving information from an Arroyo relative  who  told her that her husband was seeking treatment for his failing health.

Asked by De Vera if she inquired about Arroyo’s condition, she replied in the negative, saying that the relative had to leave immediately after the event.

The lawyer said he found it hard to believe that Alicia did not ask how her husband was faring.

“You want the court to believe that you are still a caring, legitimate wife?” Ibuna’s lawyer demanded.

Quietly but firmly, Alicia said, “Yes, yes, yes, yes.”

Originally posted: 9:48 am | Friday, February 17th, 2012