John "Sweet" Lapus, who recently shed some pounds via liposuction, had an interesting guest for Showbiz Central's "Don't Lie to Me" segment—Snooky Serna, one of the local showbiz's most controversial actresses both past and present.
Snooky sat on the lie detector seat as John grilled her with sensitive questions on her personal and professional life.
John wasted no time starting the test. He asked, "Ang dahilan daw ng hiwalayan ninyo ni Ricardo Cepeda nung araw ay usaping pera. Totoo nga ba na maluho raw ang isa sa pamilya mo?"
Snooky, who looked distant for a few seconds, answered, "Yes," which the lie detector confirmed. Which family member? John followed up curiously.
"Huwag naman," she begged off. "Magagalit ang aking beloved family. Pero past is past and ayoko na sanang pag-usapan. But [to make a] long story short, I think probably, e, nakaapekto yun sa relationship namin [ni Ricardo].
"Ako naman ang may kasalanan dahil masyado akong galante at masyado akong mapagbigay na I took my ex-husband for granted.
"Kumbaga, inuna ko ang ibang tao sa life ko, ganyan. Hindi naman sila nag-i-impose, pero ako na mismo ang nagbibigay."
John looked like he felt he didn't get an exact answer. His next question: "Totoo ba na gusto mong balikan ang iyong ex-husband na si Ricardo Cepeda?"
"No," Snooky answered in a low-pitched voice. The machine belied this, prompting John to perk up and do his lively signature dance move.
That done, John asked Snooky why she didn't want to get back with her ex-husband.
"Kasi I feel na we're much better off as friends," Snooky explained. "So, friends kami ngayon. Siguro kaya naging ‘Lie' kasi gusto ko na maging friends kami."
Moving on, John now concentrated on Snooky's most recent relationship. The question was about Snooky's ex-husband, rocker Niño Mendoza. Rumor has it that Niño's family didn't approve of Snooky. Is this true?
"Yes," Snooky said. The lie detector said she was telling the truth. When John asked her to explain, Snooky let it all out.
"Isa sa mga reasons yun. Siyempre, non-showbiz family kasi sila and, unfortunately, e, may mga preconceived notions tayo na ‘pag showbiz, parang nilalahat nila o dyine-generalize na ganun ‘yan, ganyan ‘yan, without even giving you the benefit of the doubt, or kilalanin muna nang mabuti.
"So it affected the relationship, aside from other things that I wouldn't rather talk about habang under annulment ang aming marriage," the former child actress said.
"Pero grabe, ah!" John exclaimed, alluding to Snooky's short-lived relationships. "Para kang si Britney Spears! Ang bilis!"
Snooky answered, looking crestfallen, "Wala pa kaming one year, and I'm not too proud to say, mga seven months, ganoon."
Still, she said she is proud of her decision to separate because she is happy now. She also said her family is happy, and she cannot think of putting another man before her kids.
John, who still had not realized how ma-kuwento Snooky can be, took note of Snooky's newly acquired tattoo.
"Alam mo, kapatid, kung bakit, Sweet?" Snooky began. "Kasi ever since ho, hindi n'yo naitatanong, meron akong rock star, ano, quotient... Frustrated band member ako and na-stereotype lang ako na ‘Sweet, sweet, sweet!' which I don't mind naman. Kaya lang, I have other facets naman other than being sweet."
After the interesting conversation about Snooky's tattoo and rock-star quotient, John asked the final and most controversial question: "Matapos ang iyong tell-all interview sa YES! magazine, ang diumanong pang-aabuso sa iyo noon. Ka-love team mo ba na artista din ang diumano'y nagsamantala sa ‘yo nung araw?"
After listening to the question, Snooky bowed her head and answered, "Yes."
YES! is an entertainment magazine from 2000 to 2018, which was an affiliate publication of PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal).
Due to the sensitivity of the topic, John immediately addressed the audience: "Hindi na po natin babanggitin kung sino o pangalan ng aktor na ka-love team ni Snooky Serna. Ang mahalaga, e, na-clarify na siya din ay aktor at ka-love team ni Ms. Snooky Serna nung araw."