Talk about giving marriage a second chance.

Professional basketball player James Yap yesterday apologized to his wife, celebrity Kris Aquino, on national television in an effort to put to rest a controversy sparked by an alleged extra-marital affair.

"I am really sorry. Whatever happens, I will fight for you. I won't give up. This won't happen again," Yap told Aquino on ABS-CBN's showbiz-oriented talk show "The Buzz" last night. The couple has been married for a year.

Speculations over James' "extra-marital affair" with a clinic assistant, named Hope, who works for Dr. Vicky Belo, swirled last week. But the couple did not divulge details of the issue during their close to 20-minute interview last night.

"James has already given his explanation," Kris said. "He's the only man I have been with who owned up to his mistakes".

"I am not giving up on our family. I love my wife, I love Josh and our baby," Yap, the reigning Most Valuable Player of the Philippine Basketball Association, where he plays for Purefoods, said.

James, born and raised in Escalante City, Negros Occidental, was referring to Joshua Salvador, Kris' love child with actor Philip Salvador and his first child with Kris, who is expected to give birth in three months.

An emotional Kris said she has already forgiven James. "Marriage is never perfect but it's a decision you make to stay married or walk away," she said.

"I want this marriage to last. I want us to have a family together. I want both of us to both learn from this experience," she told Yap.

While admitting she came close to a point of ending their marriage, Kris said she kept her faith in James, thinking "It was not always going to be bad" for both of them.

"We had problems. I was hurt… But we had to protect our marriage and our family," she added.

Kris said has James also apologized to her family, who also accepted the apology of the basketball player, dispelling rumors that her husband's relationship with the Aquino family is turning for the worse.

She added that Yap and her mother, former president Corazon Aquino, are constantly communicating with each other.

Kris also admitted being hurt by rumors that James is turning her into a "sugar mommy", the local slang for a woman who spends for her male partner.

"I contribute more because I earn more," Kris, who hosts top-rated programs like "Pilipinas, Game Ka Na Ba?" and "Deal or No Deal". But she added that she gets half of what her husband earns from product endorsements and his salary as a basketball player.

Yap is also endorsing numerous products like liquor, athletic shoes, juice as well as a cake and pastry shop. James is on the final year of a three-year contract with Purefoods and earns the maximum salary of P350,000 a month. He earned P150,000 a month in his rookie year and earned P75,000 more the following year.

The same source said James had apologized to Kris last week when the couple marked their respective birthdays. Kris turned 35 in Feb. 14, while James turned 24 the following day. "James and Kris agreed to have James' birthday dinner in their home to avoid the public eye".

The cracks in their marriage started to show in early February. And the speculations started to rise early last week during the pre-birthday tribute for Kris on "the Buzz", where she looked away when James tried to kiss her. *CPT

back to top