Chinese celebrities are implicated in a million dollar drug bust

Asking celebrities if they have smoked marijuana is like asking expats living in China if they have ever purchased a pirated DVD. If they answer is no, they are either lying or too stoned to know what the question was. Celebrities being caught under the influence (Nicole Richie was just arrested for driving under the influence of what she said was pot and a Vicodin) or in possession of illegal substances is nothing new. In Asia, there is a constant buzz on Apple Daily or The Sun about celebrities, from 20-year-old Cherrie Ying to 40-something movie star Anthony Wong, being caught with everything from cocaine to ecstasy.

But I’ve never seen any reaction as absurd as the two Taiwanese TV hosts Tuo Zongkang and Chu Chungheng. The duo told police they had never been in contact with anything illegal, and then just three days later they were on camera crying, begging and apologizing to the public, saying that they had lied.

“I’m wrong. I really regret that I did not admit it at the first time,” Tuo said and bowed three times. But he still insisted that he only smoked pot when he was on holiday in the Philippines and Thailand. “I’m sorry that I lied. If I keep on lying, I could not face my family and my daughters,” the other host, Chu, said at a press conference, and then proceeded to cry for about 30 seconds. Part of their humiliation probably comes from the fact that they have made their fortunes by hosting children’s television shows.

Their confessions were prompted by a raid on a restaurant entrepreneur growing marijuana in his own million-dollar home. The businessman disclosed that all the “goods” are exclusively supplied to regular customers, i.e. his celebrity friends, including Tuo, Chu, actress Susanne Hsiao and some artist managers. Tabloids report that Taiwanese police are fairly confident others will follow and admit their guilt as they have collected many urine and hair samples.

Tuo has long been known as the “Prince of Nightclubs,” and owns several of Taipei’s trendy clubs and lounges. I was once invited to Tuo’s famous Room 18 club for a re-opening party and got a glimpse of Tuo’s VIP room– a line of models and actors sitting beside him, with some of them in “trance states.” It is hard for me to believe that Tuo’s illegal partying was limited to Thailand and the Philippines.

Honesty is the best policy and George Michael knows best. He recently praised marijuana on a TV show saying, “this stuff makes me sane and happy,” and then continued to smoke a joint on TV. "I'd say it's a great drug–but obviously it's not very healthy. You can't afford to smoke it if you've got anything to do." Having been arrested for marijuana possession a few times, Michael seems the least hypocritical among many artists about cannabis. After all, for someone who was outed in a men’s public restroom, how could he get embarrassed over a little pot?