Paolo Contis confirms romance with Yen Santos, stresses she wasn’t the reason for split with LJ Reyes
Paolo Contis has confirmed his relationship with Yen Santos.
In an interview with “King of Talk” Boy Abunda posted on Jan. 30, the actor was directly asked whether or not he and Yen are a couple. To which, he replied with a straight “yes.”
“Ang sa amin kasi, what you see is what you get naman. Hindi namin puwede ipilit yung tao to be happy for us. Hindi namin puwede ipilit yung mga tao na paniwalaan yung gusto nilang paniwalaan. Sana lang isipin nila na kung ano lang yung nakikita nilang nakapost, ‘yun lang yung truth na alam nila,” he said.
Asked when their relationship started, Paolo stressed that at the time they were spotted together in Baguio in September 2021, it was true they were just hanging out “as friends.” He also noted that Yen was not the reason behind his split with his ex-girlfriend LJ Reyes—it just so happened that the TV host’s interview with LJ was posted then, where she tearfully revealed their breakup was not a mutual decision.
“Noong nag-Baguio kami ni Yen, nasa States na sila LJ noon. Nagmukhang baliktad because your interview with LJ came out, pero wala na kami sa Baguio noon,” he recalled.
“So feeling ng tao, habang ini-interview si LJ, nasa Baguio ako. Pero when you were interviewing LJ, at least 10 days na silang nasa States. I left for Baguio, nasa States na sila. Hindi na kami noon,” he explained.
Why did Paolo and LJ call it quits? The comedian said it was a mix of issues and misunderstandings combined with the stress brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Medyo matagal na kaming hindi okay ni LJ, pero we were together, of course. Napapadalas yung away. I think it’s combination na ng stress sa pandemic and everything,” said Paolo.
One of his “biggest mistakes,” however, was neglecting LJ’s mental health during the lockdown. “Isa ‘yun sa feeling kong naging simula ng downfall namin, na hindi ko inisip ‘yun. Kapag nahihirapan siya during pandemic, ang utak ko, ‘Four times a day tayo kumain, chill ka diyan,’ which was one of my biggest mistakes.”
Later on, he also confessed to engaging in “kalokohans” during their relationship. “Yung pagdidiskarte ko ng sarili ko, na hindi ko na ini-inform sa kanya yung mga bagay-bagay, which led to bigger problems,” he mused, refusing to provide more details and simply saying their issues “eventually piled up.”
“Hindi kami nag-uusap nang maayos. Plus, every time ako nakakalabas ng bahay dahil pandemic may work, may mga kalokohan din akong ginagawa,” he admitted.
Paolo and LJ share a lovely daughter named Summer. They started dating in 2015 and ended their relationship sometime in 2021.