Bacolod City Mayor Albee Benitez’s camp ended their silence after the public official’s wife, Nikki Benitez, filed charges against him.
According to the statement published by Benitez’s legal counsel, Peter Sanchez, the timing of the case filing was questionable since some of the incidents mentioned in the complaint filed by Mrs. Benitez happened as far back as two decades ago.
They also claimed that the mayor didn’t fail to support his partner despite being separated a long time ago.
“Every property acquired during the marriage—including the multi-million peso residences in Forbes Park and Dasmariñas Village—was fully paid for by Mayor Benitez using his own resources, but titled in the name of the complainant, Dominique Lopez-Benitez. This also includes high-value assets such as condominium units, luxury vehicles, and a substantial amount of publicly listed shares, all of which were funded by Mayor Benitez but registered under her,” the lawyer said.
There was also a court order that the mayor was only obligated to support his wife and his family, but he was generous enough to give more.
“Mayor Benitez continued to provide not just ordinary support but a high standard of living, shouldering personal, household, and even extended family expenses for more than two decades. This included the complainant’s travel business ventures, staff, and credit card charges-even long after their separation,” the report read.
Benitez’s camp also urged the complainant to stop dragging actress Ivana Alawi on the issue, saying that naming individuals would be against the process of VAWC.