Romeo Librada (born January 13, 1982), better known in his stage name Super Tekla or simply Tekla, is a Filipino actor, comedian and television host. He is best known for appearing in GMA Network's variety show, Wowowin as one of its hosts.[1]
Early life
Librada was born in the small town of Pigcawayan, a town in Cotabato wherein he was raised by the Manobo tribe and was trained to be a farmer. His mother died at an early age, according to him.[2] Due to this, he supported his own education until he finished high school. He has seven siblings.[3]
Career
Stand-up comedy
Out of curiosity, Librada went alone to Manila wherein he found himself singing on stage at malls and comedy bars for fun. He was then discovered and got regular stints as a singer first, then a stand-up comedian, at a popular comedy bar.[2] He is best known for his Celine Dion and Whitney Houston voice impersonations.[3]
Television
In 2016, Librada appeared as a contestant in GMA Network's game show, Wowowin main host Willie Revillame saw his potential in comedy and hired him as one of his co-hosts. He later formed a comedic duo with Donita Nose in the said show.[4][5] A year after, he was allegedly fired by Revillame due to his alcoholic and gambling vices, in which Librada denied. On 2020, he was once welcomed again by Wowowin after guesting.[6][7]
In 2018, Librada got his first major role in Inday Will Always Love You when he was cast as Kimberlou, the gay sidekick of lead actress Barbie Forteza.[9] His life story has been featured on the Kapuso drama anthology Magpakailanman, which gained high ratings for the show. Since then, he has been guested by the drama show twice, appearing in various true-to-life lead roles.
Although visually presented as gay, Librada identifies himself as a straight man. He has a daughter from his ex-wife named Irene Gonzales.[11][2][12]
Sexual misconduct allegation
In October 2020, Librada's live-in partner, Michelle Bana-ag, alleged in Raffy Tulfo in Action that the comedian had repeatedly sexually abused her and her child from an earlier marriage. This included demanding sexual intercourse in exchange for food while Michelle was ailing due to side-effects of contraceptive injection.[13][14] Librada denied any wrongdoing, contending he would never rape Bana-ag as he has a daughter. Librada was later exonerated when Bana-ag was unable to provide sufficient evidence against the comedian, and testimonies from Librada's colleagues revealed past abuses from Bana-ag, namely her methamphetamine addiction as well as her lesbian relationship with a female partner.[15] This ultimately led to Raffy Tulfo withdrawing his previous pledge to support Bana-ag after the latter declined to take a drug test to prove her innocence.[16]
