TR EMERITUS

Written by Our Correspondent The Jack Neo sex scandal took an unexpected turn when PBM Jack Neo finally broke his silence and spoke to the media for the first time to dispel the fresh allegations made against him everyday. The scandal erupted last Saturday after Jack's mistress 22 year old Wendy Chong leaked the story to the media. Jack immediately called his good friend Foreign Minister George Yeo who wrote on his blog imploring Singaporeans to "rally" around him and his family. Jack  held a brief 3-minute press conference on Thursday to "tell all", but did not apologize or take any questions. He had since posted a public apology on a blog he shared with George Yeo. In an exclusive interview with The New Paper today, Jack said he was sorry for what happened: "I had only ONE affair, for which I am totally repentant and totally remorseful," he proclaimed. However, recent media reports revealed that he had as many as 10 other women in his life including flings with a former acting student and a script-writer from Thailand. One former artiste of his entertainment group Foyce Le Xuan had accused him of sexually harrassing her by asking her to share “quiet” and “private” moments with her in a hotel room. When she rejected all his advances, she found herself gradually being dropped from acting assignments and projects. Jack replied to the accusations in an agitated tone: "As for the others who have surfaced to make all kinds of claims, I wonder what their motives are. Is it because they think I am down-and-out now that they can join in to cast stones at me?" he told TNP. Foyce subsequently told Lianhe Wanbao that she had forgiven Jack: “I have forgiven him and I hope he will turn over a new leaf. I also must apologize to Mrs Neo,” Foyce was quoted as saying. There were no immediate comments from Foyce regarding the counter-accusation from Jack. The scandal of the year which has captured the attention of the entire nation from the young to the old has polarized opinions among Singaporeans. While some regard Jack's infidelity as a private matter to be settled within his own family, others felt that being a public figure and famous movie director, he should be held accountable for his actions. Besides Jack, two PAP MPs also suffer "collateral damage" as a result of lending "support" to him unwittingly. George Yeo was lambasted by netizens for his call on Singaporeans to rally around Jack and Lim Biow Chuan for insinuating that it is unavoidable for successful men to be involved in extramarital affairs.   Jack Neo and wife Irene Kng’s press conference on 11 March 2010: 1. Video recording of press conference 2. Irene Kng fainted at press conference 3. Photo Gallery 4. Field Report: Jack Neo and wife broke down in tears 5. Live coverage of press conference   Related articles: 1. Transsexual masseur: Jack Neo got "special service" from me 2. PBM Jack Neo apologizes on shared blog with George Yeo 3. PAP MP Lim Biow Chuan claimed he was “misquoted” by media 4. George Yeo slammed by netizens for supporting Jack Neo 5. Jack Neo makes advances to 16 year old French girl 6.Jack Neo’s 10 other flings after Wendy Chong 7. Wendy Chong on how Jack Neo initiated sex with her in his car 8. George Yeo supports PBM Jack Neo 9. Foyce accuses PBM Jack Neo of sexual harrassment 10. Wendy Chong: I had sex with Jack Neo twice a week 11. Jack Neo’s wife forgives him for extra marital affair 12. Jack Neo begged Wendy Chong to let him off  Read More →

OPINION PBM Jack Neo who received much public criticism and opprobrium lately from both the local media and online community for his 3-minute press conference on Thursday claimed that it was "aborted' prematurely because his wife Irene Kng had stood up to leave halfway during the conference and he had no choice but to follow her. In an interview with The New Paper, today, Jack explained that he had intended to apologize during the press conference, but was stopped by his wife who stood up to leave. "Jack said he had intended to apologize after she spoke, but she stood up to leave, then collapsed into his arms." [Source: The New Paper, 13 March 2010] His claims were corroborated by his good friend Mark Lee in the Straits Times earlier. "Neo had planned to apologise after Madam Kng spoke but 'he couldn't do it because Ah Bu (Irene Kng) stood up to leave', said Mark Lee, using the Hokkien nickname for his mentor's wife. It means mother. 'He knew that Ah Bu stood up because she could not take it any more. The pressure and all the camera flashes were too much for her. So when she wanted to leave, Jack had to accompany her.'" [Source: Straits Times, 12 March 2010] The two accounts seem to give one the impression that Irene Kng was the one who wanted to leave the press conference and stood up FIRST to do so and Jack has NO CHOICE but to follow her, thereby ending the session abruptly. However, a REWIND of a video clip at the end of the press conference reveals that it is UNTRUE. Jack was the FIRST one to stand up after his wife ended her speech and it was him who held her up and led her to leave the conference:   Let us take you through snapshots of segments of the above video clip between 2:38 and 2:57 minutes: 2:38 minute: End of Irene Kng's speech   2:39 minute: Jack Neo got up first while Irene was still seated crying.   2:41 minute: Jack Neo helping Irene to stand up. It was not Irene who stood up on her own first as claimed by both Jack and Mark.   2:42 minute: Jack Neo (standing) holding Irene up with both hands.   2:46 minute: Irene stood up finally.   2:47 minute: Jack turned around and walked towards the exit while holding Irene in his arms. It was pretty obvious that Jack was the one who left first and bringing his wife along.   2:48 minute: Barely a second after standing up, Irene "fainted".   2:49 minute: Irene still "collapsing".   2:50 minute: Irene finally "collapsed" on the ground.   2:55 minute: Jack Neo took 5 seconds to bend down to help Irene up as if waiting for the press to take snapshots of his wife collapsing on the ground.   2:57 minute: Jack got Irene up and left the scene.   Conclusion: As we can see from the above, Irene Kng did not stand up to leave the conference after she finished her speech as claimed by Jack and Mark. It was Jack Neo who stood up first and held Irene up to her feet later before making their way to the exit. Most incredibly, Irene "fainted" one second later on standing up, took two seconds to collapse on the ground before Jack took another five seconds to react to her. Is the entire fracas staged? Is Jack Neo lying through his teeth? Is Irene being coerced to take part in the "wayang"? We leave it to you readers to judge for yourselves.  Read More →

Written by Our Correspondent PAP MP Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade GRC) has been "missing in action" for the last five days after posting a "clarification" on his Facebook and STOMP that he had been "misquoted" by Shin Min Daily. In an interview with Shin Min Daily on 7 March 2010 about the Jack Neo sex scandal which has rocked the entire nation, MP Lim appeared to have defended PBM Jack Neo's actions by insinuating that it is "unavoidable" for successful men to be involved in extramarital affairs. “Over the years, to me, Jack Neo is a good son, father and also a good husband. Since he is remorseful over this incident, he should be forgiven. Actually, a man who has good career development would find such scenarios unavoidable,” MP Lim was quoted as saying. His comments sparked a massive outcry in cyberspace with many irate netizens flaming him for it, including a thread on STOMP which has garnered more than 500 postings so far. A day later, Mr Lim issued a clarification on both his Facebook and STOMP that he has been “misquoted” by Shin Min Daily: MP Lim wrote that he meant to say: “Mr Jack Neo had a reputation for being a good son, a good father and a good husband. For a man who has good career development and had allowed such an incident to happen, it is so sad and such a pity.” The stark contrast between the two led some netizens to question if MP Lim was really "misquoted" or simply pushing the blame to the media to save his own skin. Big Eye wrote: "I don’t see how he could be misquoted. Well, the words he used in actual VS clarification are totally different. You would think that a misquote would have a lot of similarities. Shin Min Daily is under SPH. Public figure = check the articles repeatedly before publishing. He has done it before (and claimed he was misquoted again). You know what? I find it hard to swallow that he is the only guy in PAP who’s always getting misquoted." vctv added: "Don’t treat us like idiots Mr Lim, we can read the Chinese report and it was exactly what you said! If the papers misquote you, as a lawyer you would have already sued them! You just have no guts to admit you use the wrong words! PAP and the Law society must be really ashamed of scums like you!" An angry netizen Sarah Leong emailed MP Lim to convey her unhappiness: "Too too late, Mr Lim. Just be gracious and suffer the consequences of your loose mouth. By backtracking on your words, you belie your own credibilty! So don’t make matters worse for yourself! If you truly believe taht you have been misquoted, you should take the Shin Min papers to task! If you do not, it just confirms your guilt. Tarra! As per my email to you, just serve out the rest of your term in Parliament quietly and stick to your constitutional duties! Just to refresh your memory, I am sending you a copy: I read with disbelief and shock AND outrage, that you, as a Member of Parliament, actually condone what Jack Neo has done – that you are telling us that it is permissible for Jack Neo to take advantage of his position, as one with so-called, to quote you, ‘good career development’ and use the casting couch to lure aspiring starlets, one reportedly as young as 16 years old, to satiate his lust???!!!" Kytan put it bluntly: "Ah lim, if u keep your mouth shut,nobody will say u are dumb..there is many other better way to carry balls n score point..if the victim happen to be your daughter or niece.. wonder will u still say the same thing n give jack your support.." AL claimed that it is easy to find out if MP Lim is saying the truth: "The proof is in the recordings. Media staff usually record their interviews using their mobile phones or small recorder so that they can refresh what was said. SIMPLE AS THAT! Check with the reporter who interviewed him." MP Lim should consider himself fortunate that Shin Min Daily will never dare to reveal the recorded interview and embarrass him publicly. The same thing cannot be said of his colleague PAP minister George Yeo who is now stuck in a quandrary as he had openly issued a call on his blog to Singaporeans to "rally" around PBM Jack Neo immediately after the scandal erupted. He cannot say he was "misquoted" by his own blog, can he? PAP MPs have the knack of passing the blame to the media for "misquoting" them after making incredible faux pases publicly. In 2009, PAP MP Charles Chong also claimed that he was "misquoted" by TODAY for denigrating Singaporeans as "lesser mortals" followed by Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan months later who accused the media of "misquoting" him for his plan to send Singaporean elderly to die in JB nursing homes.   Related articles: 1. PAP MP Lim Biow Chuan: I was "misquoted" 2. PAP MP Lim Biow Chuan flamed by netizens for defending Jack Neo 3. George Yeo slammed by angry netizens for supporting Jack Neo  Read More →