Dani Barretto took a stand against her stepfather, Dennis Padilla, after he publicly reacted to her recent statements about her childhood involving her mother, Marjorie Barretto, and an allegedly unhealthy relationship she witnessed growing up.
The exchange stemmed from Dani’s guest appearance on the “Almost Honest” podcast hosted by Kylie Verzosa, where she opened up about the impact of witnessing conflict and emotional turmoil during her younger years.
Dani is Marjorie’s daughter with her former partner, Kier Legaspi.
“Childhood namin ‘yun, e. ‘Yan ‘yung childhood namin ng mga kapatid ko, nasanay kami dun,” Dani shared. “We saw the yelling. We heard of the yelling, the screaming, everything my mom went through. And tumatak sa amin yun, di ba?”
Dani reflected on how those experiences shaped her and her siblings, saying she admired her mother for leaving what she described as a painful situation she did not deserve.
“Mga bata kami nun, but that stayed with us. So I’m just glad my mom left, you know. I’m just glad my mom really saw that she did not deserve that sh*t and left,” she said.
Dani added that witnessing her mother rebuild her life influenced the strength and resilience she and her siblings carry today.
“And because she did that, I feel like that’s why we’re all strong women, e. I feel like, all of us, magkakapatid, feeling ko kaya matatapang or yung personality namin strong, kasi nakita namin sa mom namin, e, that you can leave situations like this. You are allowed—kahit very mahirap yung process—of leaving or getting out or you have to start again, there is a freedom that comes with it.”
In an Instagram post where Dani’s podcast appearance was posted, Dennis appeared to respond in the comments section, writing: “The yelling came from your Mom… She kept denying… Wait for my answer… Dani ‘wag masyadong know it all.”
Dennis reacted strongly as he appeared to defend himself from Dani’s story,
He continued to defend himself in a separate comment, adding, “Dani… Abangan mo sagot ko… Point by point… Mula nung nasa tyan ka pa ng nanay mo… I felt abused… I felt liberated nung nakawala ako sa relationship na sinasabi mo. Huwag masyadong mayabang. Wala kang alam. Half lang alam mo.”
Although both comments have already been deleted, screenshots quickly circulated on social media.
In response, Dani fired back in a lengthy message, accusing Dennis of “gaslighting” their family and using social media to portray himself as the victim.
“I think you’re forgetting we all lived in the same house. That we woke up to your screams almost every morning. Kung hindi si mom sinisigawan mo, one of the help,” she wrote back.
“This is what you always do, use social media to ‘defend’ yourself and spread more lies and gaslight your children and now me. You keep pushing this narrative na kinawawa ka. Weren’t you the abusive one?”
She continued by alleging that Dennis would often lash out publicly and even contact his children while intoxicated.
“Kahit nasaan tayo, kahit sa mall, sa grocery, wala kang pinipiling lugar para may sigawan. Default mo ‘yan noon hanggang ngayon. ‘Di ba tatawag ka sa mga anak mo mostly laging madaling araw kasi lasing ka para murahin at sigawan lang sila? And now know it all pa ko? Ikaw nanaman kawawa? Si mom nanaman sisiraan mo.”
“Enough is enough. All your kids know who you are. That’s why most of them have no communication with you. Because you burned bridges with each of them. Pero sa kwento mo, sila ang mali and ikaw pa rin ang kawawa. Make it make sense,” her response concluded.
Dennis later reiterated that he would answer Dani’s claims “point by point.”
The latest exchange comes a year after Marjorie addressed Dennis’ previous remarks regarding their children and the alleged “mistreatment” he claimed to have experienced during the intimate wedding of their daughter, Claudia, to Basti Lorenzo.
Marjorie and Dennis’ marriage was annulled in 2009. At the time, Marjorie stated that Dennis never filed for joint custody of their children.
