“…that story affected my daughter and my in-laws” – Mery Aigbe re-addresses her husband disgrace saga

In a very recent interview with Saturday
PUNCH, movie star, Mercy Aigbe-Gentry re-
addressed her V-Channel event incident
where it was rumoured that her husband
Mr. Lanre Gentry, pummelled her after
finding her in a night gown inside a hotel
room.
Read excerpts below:
When you read negative reports about
yourself, true or false, how do you feel?
At times, they actually get to me; I will not
lie about it. I am an emotional person.
Before the story about my husband and I
fighting broke, I had actually not had any
scandal like that. When the story broke, I
was shocked and asked myself why
someone would do such to a fellow human
being.
The story just kept buzzing everywhere and
I felt very bad. It got to me. Before then, I
thought it was
all part of the job, that whatever they wrote
was their business.
What pained me most about the story was
that my daughter came back from school
and told me that her classmates asked her
if the story was true, if her daddy and I
fought. It was painful because she is a girl
and someday she is going to get married.
My father-in-law called me to ask me if it
was true. That is why I had to do a video
debunking the claims.
How did your husband feel when he saw
it?
He felt very bad because the story also
indicted him, saying that he was a wife
beater. It painted him as a bad person but
in all, I thank God that my husband was
with me all through. He knew there was no
iota of truth in the story. He also learnt
that not all stories were true. That
particular story actually got to me. Thank
God it has passed, I am waxing stronger
and my marriage is still strong.
Do you still have that
controversial dress in
your wardrobe?
After the story broke, I called my designer
and said, ‘Tokunbo, that cloth you made
for me, did you see the story?’ Anytime I
see the dress, I have mixed feelings, I laugh
and feel somehow. I have never worn it
after that day; it has a story attached to it.
You know the thing about these dresses
once you wear them on the red carpet, that
is it.
Can you buy a handbag for N5m?
I don’t know. I cannot say the amount I can
spend on an item. I love fashion. One thing
about fashion is that when you see
something you like, if you don’t buy it,
you’ll not have peace of mind till you get it,
no matter the cost. That is the kind of
person I am, and that is why I cannot say
how much I can spend on an item. Most
times when I see things I like and I have
the money, I buy. I am working hard and
making my money. If it makes me happy,
why not get it? We only have a life to live. At
the same time, I also know that there are
people that I can reach out to and put a
smile on their faces. So what I do is find a
way to balance both.
How about the N80m mansion your
husband is reportedly building in Ikeja?
I don’t want to comment on that.
How long does it take you to dress?
It depends on where I am going. If I am
going to a party, it will take me longer.
Basically, I’ll say it takes me about an hour
to get dressed. The funny part of it is that if
I have somewhere to go, the night before,
I’ll bring out like three clothes and some
shoes to choose from. So, it makes it easier
for me the next morning.
Do you ask your husband to help you
choose what to wear?
Yes, I do. Trust me, they are tired of me -my
husband and my daughter. My daughter
will tell me, ‘Mummy it is okay’ while my
husband will say something like ‘Darling,
just choose one, they all look great on you’.