The Straits Times 29 Sep 2009
<!-- headline one : end -->
Now Miss S'pore World says she told organiser about credit card
fraud conviction only last week
THE organiser of the scandal-tarnished Miss Singapore World
pageant finally broke its silence on the Ris Low saga yesterday,
saying it had no knowledge of her conviction for credit card fraud
when she was crowned queen.
THE organiser of the scandal-tarnished Miss Singapore World
pageant finally broke its silence on the Ris Low saga yesterday,
saying it had no knowledge of her conviction for credit card fraud
when she was crowned queen.
After days of silence on the issue, ERM Marketing said in a
statement yesterday that it would now be seeking legal advice on
whether to allow Miss Low to keep her crown.
The tersely worded statement said the company was investigating
the issue, and would make a decision later in the week, once it has
all the 'pertinent facts'.
It added: 'Kindly do not call us or disturb for answers. We will
entertain you once we have a decision made.'
Since news of Miss Low's troubles with the law surfaced last
week, ERM has kept its silence, despite the raging debate among
Singaporeans over whether Miss Low should continue as Miss
Singapore World. Even a politician has weighed in: Member of
Parliament Lee Bee Wah (Ang Mo Kio GRC) told the Chinese evening
daily Shin Min on Saturday that Miss Low should not represent
Singapore internationally.
She said: 'Using another person's credit card is a very serious
offence. Honesty and integrity are very important.'
However, when pressed last week for an answer due to the high
level of public interest in the matter, ERM said: 'Singaporeans did
not pay for her.'
Miss Low, 19, has been a magnet for controversy ever since video
footage of her speaking poor English made the rounds on the
Internet.
Things got worse last week, when a report in My Paper, Singapore
Press Holdings' free publication, broke the story that she had
stolen several credit cards and used them to pay for $8,000 worth
of jewellery, lingerie and restaurant bills, among other
things.
She was sentenced to 24 months' supervised probation for her
crimes.
Her statements to the media since then have added fuel to the
controversy.
When asked by The Straits Times and other papers last week
whether the organisers knew about her conviction, she insisted that
they did.
But yesterday, Miss Low made an abrupt U-turn and confirmed
ERM's version of the events.
She said she told the company about her brush with the law only
after the My Paper story appeared last Friday.
She added that she let on only after she was asked about it:
'They ask then I tell lah, because actually I don't find the point
of telling...'
Asked why she did not come clean about her conviction from the
start, she replied: 'It's still a record, but it's not as though
it's that big... I was given a second chance to change.'
However, ERM's terms and conditions for contestants, which are
stated on its website and which applicants have to accept and agree
to before they submit entry forms online, state clearly that
fugitives from the law, or those charged with or convicted of a
crime, are disqualified from taking part.
Asked about this, Miss Low said she did not read the regulations
carefully before signing up.
'I didn't really go and check because I've joined other pageants
before, and they didn't really check,' she said.
The continuing controversy has incensed the pageant's sponsors,
who each forked out between $3,000 and $10,000.
Mr Kelvin Koh, who owns the Young and Healthy brand of health
supplements and was a main sponsor of the contest, wants Miss Low
to be stripped of the title.
He said: 'She was never my choice to win. Now, it is not just
her bad English but a record of fraud too. How can she represent
Singapore on the world stage?'
Others, while clearly unhappy about the turn events have taken,
were less adamant about dropping the beauty queen.
The managing director of co-sponsor Pet Lovers Centre, Mr Ng
Whay Hoe, said: 'Whatever has happened is not good and not
right.'
However, he added: 'When somebody is already down, there is no
need to press her down further.'
Attempts to contact Miss World International, which is based in
Britain, have been unsuccessful.
ERM is the regional franchise holder for many international
beauty pageants, including Miss World and Mrs World, and runs local
contests such as Manhunt Singapore, Miss Singapore Chinatown and
Miss Singapore Tourism.
Its directors are long-time pageant director Alex Liu and Ms Lee
Wan Leng, who is Malaysian.
The company runs similar pageants in several countries,
including Malaysia and China.
[email protected]
