MANILA — Lilibeth Romero, the long-time partner of Eddie Garcia, thanked the public for the outpouring of support following the death of the screen icon.

"I am grateful to everyone who offered prayers and supported us throughout this time. You gave us strength," Romero said in a statement to ABS-CBN News' Mario Dumaual on Friday.

Referring to Garcia, Romero continued: "For 12 days I did not leave him; maybe he did not really want to go because he wanted another take!"

Garcia, who died aged 90, had been in critical condition and comatose state for nearly two weeks after an on-set accident during a taping for a GMA-7 series that resulted in his severe cervical fracture.

Garcia had been on life support, and on June 14 his family agreed to place him under DNR or "do not resuscitate" status, a week before his death.

With a career spanning 70 years, Garcia had remained active in showbiz until his last days. He had just wrapped his three-year stint on ABS-CBN's "Ang Probinsyano" when he took on the role in the GMA-7 series. In 2018, he starred in three movies.

"I'll just be in the industry as long as it needs me. Siguro, kung hindi na ako kailangan, sayonara!" he had said in a 2012 interview.

Romero told ABS-CBN News that she plans to bring home Garcia's ashes at the end of his wake on Sunday.