One Direction: Philippines demanded Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson drug bond before tour
One Direction's Zayn Malik was warned he would have to pay a £3,300 fee to ensure he would not smoke cannabis in Philippines this weekend (21 and 22 March) before he quit the band's Far East tour on 19 March over "stress" problems amid cheating claims.
Fellow bandmate Louis Tomlinson was also given the warning by the Philippines Bureau of Immigration to post the money via the concert producer in order to retrieve special work permits after a video purportedly showed the pair smoking cannabis in May 2014.
The Anti-Drugs Advocate Group was reportedly behind the call to the bureau to scrutinise the band members' permits. "The condition is intended to protect the public interest should the band members commit any violation during their stay in the Philippines," the agency's spokeswoman Elaine Tan said.
The producer went to the Immigration Bureau on Thursday afternoon to post the bonds, Christine Ching, a spokeswoman of Anti-Drugs Advocate, told Sky News.
"The group is concerned about the popular band's influence on Filipino youth," Ching added.
But it appears the strict condition will only apply to Tomlinson as Malik has disappointed fans with his announcement that he will not perform in Hong Kong and in the Philippines with his bandmates, blaming stress amid cheating allegations with fiancee Perrie Edwards lookalike, named as holidaymaker Lauren Rich.
One Direction's rep confirmed the news and told IBTimes UK: "Zayn has been signed off with stress and is flying back to the UK to recuperate. The band wish him well and will continue with their performances in Manila and Jakarta."
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