ONE basic rule that Joey Marquez has strictly imposed upon all his 16 children is that there are no half-siblings only brothers and sisters.
In their rare appearance together on Fast Talk with Boy Abunda, Joey and Winwyn, his daughter with Alma Moreno, shared certain household realities not many people are aware of.
Among others, this includes Joey gathering all 16 of them at one point as he calmly sought their understanding on what their family has become.
The veteran actor faced them with an apologetic tone and owning up to his womanizing ways. “I told them if they could help me rectify my mistakes by treating each other as their own. I acknowledged my shortcomings toward their mothers, and that’s the least I could do to make it up to my kids,” Joey said.
Such dynamics have successfully been in place, as attested to by Winwyn who gets along very well with her 15 siblings — even the ones born to Alma, Mark Anthony Fernandez (by Rudy Fernandez) and Vandolph (by Dolphy): “I practically grew up with Vandolph. Oh, there’s so much fun within our household!” Winwyn said.
“It’s all a matter of explaining well to them. Luckily, none of them ever resisted,” Joey said.
Over dinner when all 16 of them gathered around the table, Winwyn and an elder sister (to a different mom) curiously asked their dad how come they share the same birth year and birth month.
Joey turned to them and replied matter-of-factly: “It’s a miracle!” All 16 then burst into a raucous laughter. Admittedly, he thought there was no other clever way to explain it.
While the showbiz father of more than a dozen plays no favorites, Joey confessed that his dialogues with his sons are not exactly the same with the girls.
This line of discussion had anything to do with the likelihood of his daughters ending up with guys who may be like their “polygamous dad.”
Talk about divine karma, of course, Joey wouldn’t want that to happen: “But in case it happens, God forbid, I’ll just lay down the pros and cons.”
Fortunately in Winwyn’s case, her current partner and dad of her daughter is not of the same mold. She even describes the guy as caring and faithful.
With Joey’s sons though, he is sterner and expects a greater deal of responsibility. While boys will always be boys, “it’s no license to shirk on your paternal duties. Once I learn they’re neglectful as fathers, I will never tolerate it... I’ll be their worst enemy!”
Thankfully, Joey has successfully seen it through — treating it as a lasting legacy he can pass on to his offspring.