CLAUDINE Barretto declared she is now “Claudine Barretto Yan,” while sharing that she now shares a close relationship with Rico Yan’s mother Sita that goes beyond the late actor.
Barretto spoke about her closeness with Sita on her Instagram account on Saturday, Sept. 13, while sharing old clips of herself with the late matinee idol.
“It’s not about Rico anymore. It’s about my [love and] relationship with his Mom, who now accepted me as her daughter. So @tinamarieyan @gerryytee [and] I are now ‘REAL SISTERS.’ I can now say I am not just Claudine Barretto. I am now Claudine Barretto YAN,” she captioned her post.
Barretto expressed her gratitude to Rico’s family for putting the past behind them and accepting her into the family, saying the late actor can now “rest.”
“Not a sister in law, not a daughter in law but Sita Yan’s Daughter. I am so blessed [because] she makes me feel loved every single day. What once was just forgiveness is now a REAL FAMILY. RY, [you] can now rest Hun. We now have each other to take good care of,” she wrote.
The actress added that she will love Rico for “eternity and beyond will.”
“You can now Fly with [you’re] beautiful dimple faced smile. As I let [you] go [I] carry all the luv [and] beautiful memories with me in my heart till infinity & beyond. Rest now my sweet Prince. [I] luv [you], always have & Forever till eternity & beyond will,” she said.Rico’s sister Tina showed love for the actress in the comments.
Barretto was the final girlfriend of Rico before his sudden death in March 2002. Relationship aside, their partnership was one of the most prominent loveteams in the 1990s and 2000s, having worked together on “Dahil Mahal Na Mahal Kita” and “Got 2 Believe,” to name a few.
She also revealed in a May 2024 tell-all interview that she protected the late matinee actor to the best she could, noting that they both had something to do with the end of their romance.
The actress had a tumultuous relationship with the actor’s family following his death, although they had reconnected sometime last year. (Hannah Mallorca © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
