Judy Ann Santos helps a friend in need

Last Saturday, July 28, Judy Ann's friend, production designer Dante Nico "Ga" Garcia, was involved in a scuffle with a ledge dancer in O Bar, Malate. Direk Andoy Ranay was also in the bar when the brawl happened.

"May taping ako kagabi, e. Noong napack-up na ako, tamang-tama tumatawag si Ga sa akin. Iyon nga sinabi niya sa akin na pinukpok ng bote ang ulo niya, hindi niya alam

kung sino, duguan siya. So ako, to the rescue kasi being a friend, ayoko naman na naa-agrabyado din ‘yong kaibigan ko," said Judy Ann Santos in an interview with The Buzz.

Juday's Ysabella co-star, Derek Ramsay, also received a call from Dante.

"Pumunta ako sa Malate, siyempre kaibigan ko iyon, to see what was happening. Iyon nga nagka-problema lang yata sa bar, so pumunta lang ako doon para sumuporta sa kanya, [to] convince him na pumunta sa hospital para magpa-check-up," he said.

BAR BRAWL. In a separate taped interview, Dante narrated the incident: "Madaming tao. May mga sumasayaw sa ledge ganoon. Ako, pumasok lang ako. Nakatayo ako sa isang corner. Wala pa kaming fifteen minutes doon. May lumapit sa akin na may tinatanong sa akin [kaso] maingay. ‘Yong lumapit na iyon may tinatanong nga hindi ko nga narinig."

Direk Andoy seconded, "This guy bumubulong sa kanya ng ganoon, tapos biglang umalis. Sinundan ko ng tingin. And then the guy went to the bar and got hold of something na hindi ko na nakita kasi it happened so fast at madilim at madaming tao... [He] went back to Ga and smashed the bottle doon sa ulo niya. I was shocked. Tapos inawat namin ‘yong lalaki. Tapos noon nilabas na namin si Ga."

The ledge dancer was said to have been a contractual employee of O Bar. Dante's camp reportedly talked to the owners of the bar to find out more about the dancer, but the owners allegedly said that they didn't have the dancer's personal information. The owners also reportedly accused Dante of harassing the dancer.

Dante argued, "Iresponsable silang owner ng bar, bilang wala silang papeles ng mga tao nila, bilang hindi sila naga-attend doon sa needs ng customers nila. Be it kasalanan ko o hindi, obligasyon nila ako dahil nandoon ako sa loob ng bar nila pero ‘yong gumawa pa sila ng show at dumedma. Hindi puwede ‘to. Kailangan nilang panagutan ito."

Juday commented, "May-ari ako ng bar kahit may contractual kami or mayroong gustong pumasok sa amin, lahat iyon empleyado mo, aalamin mo ang information noon, di ba? Iyon lang iyon. Basic rules iyon sa pagha-handle ng bar. Sana naman hindi itinatago. Ang sa akin lang naman, hindi ako nagpunta doon sa bar na iyon para gumawa ng eksena. Kaibigan ko iyong nadehado. Kahit sinong kaibigan ko ang madehado sa kahit na saang lugar, ganoon ang gagawin ko."

Dante added, "Noong dumating si Juday na nagtatanong, pinagtawanan pa siya nung kausap niya na isang lalaki. Ang sabi [kay Juday], ‘Akala ko tatawag kayo ng press pero ikaw lang pala ang dadating. Hindi ako nasa-starstruck sa 'yo.' Wala namang ginawa si Juday, walang eksena. Walang umarte ng hindi tama doon sa sitwasyon, maliban sa mga owners ng bar."

Dante was brought to the Ospital ng Maynila for his injury. He also went to the Ermita Police Station to file a report on the incident.

O BAR. The owner of the bar, Rupert Acuña, sent an official statement to The Buzz:

"We at O Bar are surprised that this incident has been brought to national attention through your show. We're a fun bar and cater to professionals. We discourage indecent acts whether from our ledge dancers or from our clients.

"According to witnesses, the ledge dancer gave Mr. Garcia several warnings to stop harassing him, but he didn't stop. We do not condone the actions of the dancer and we have indefinitely suspended him. However, we expect our clients to act responsibly and know how to handle their liquor.

"When the incident occurred, we called the police. This is part of standard procedure. Mr. Garcia was too intoxicated to give a straight answer to them. We were surprised when Ms. Judy Ann Santos arrived with Derek Ramsay. We found out she's a friend of Mr. Garcia. In fairness to Judy Ann, she remained calm and listened to our side. We respect and admire her for her fairness to us and the loyalty she gave to a friend. Pinakita niya kung ano ang tunay na kaibigan at isang taong maganda ang kalooban. We apologize to her for any inconvenience.

"We are all adults and are responsible for our actions. It's sad Mr. Garcia was not responsible enough."
GMANews.TV