Source : Straits Times - 31 Mar 2009
MOVIE star Jackie Chan has cleared the air and confirmed that he will donate some of his antique houses from the Qing and Ming dynasties to Singapore.
The superstar’s offer, first reported last month, was cast in doubt recently when Hong Kong newspapers said he might change his mind if the territory’s officials gave him a concrete offer to exhibit his antiques there.
The reports saying the Hong Kong government had identified two possible sites for the relics had fans here questioning whether his offer to Singapore was genuine or just a tactic to put pressure on the territory’s authorities.
But yesterday, Chan, who was in town to promote his latest movie Shinjuku Incident, told The Straits Times: ‘I will not back out on my word once I have made a promise to donate the antique houses to Singapore.’
When told about local fans’ reactions, Chan, 54, looked concerned and said: ‘I will not disappoint my fans here.’
Speaking in Mandarin and Cantonese, he added: ‘When the Singapore Government heard about it last year, it was very keen and prompt in its response.’
He added that he had been trying unsuccessfully for a decade to find a home for the relics in Hong Kong.
‘I am prepared to pay the land cost but that project did not materialise after talks with the Hong Kong officials.’
The houses are part of his private collection of seven antique wooden houses estimated to be worth $100 million.
The superstar’s gifts to Singapore will include three wooden houses, a performing stage and a wooden hut dating back more than 200 years.
These rare examples of Chinese housing from a bygone era, amassed over nearly 20 years, are set to be displayed at Singapore’s fourth university campus in Changi when it is completed in 2011.
Last Saturday, Education Minister Ng Eng Hen said in a Lianhe Zaobao report that the Government was waiting for Chan’s decision on the donation.
Dr Ng said: ‘We proposed that he donate the rare gift of ancient buildings to the new university of Singapore so that students…are able to experience the influence of Chinese culture.
‘He also liked the proposal of storing the buildings at an educational institution.’
Mr Simon Kwan, 52, Chan’s property manager in Singapore, told The Straits Times yesterday that he will be in touch with the Ministry of Education this week regarding the donations.
The structures are now stored in a warehouse in Hong Kong.
When asked if the other relics would be exhibited in Hong Kong, Chan paused before saying: ‘I doubt it. I have given the Hong Kong government enough time to work on it.’
He also said that it was never his intention to donate all seven antique houses to Singapore: ‘At that time, I had not decided which pieces were coming here.’
The movie star added that he was looking forward to seeing his prized collection at the new university. ‘The exhibits will benefit the students as the antique houses will be used as educational tools and research. I trust that the relics, which have been torn down from their original locations, will be well-preserved and restored in Singapore.’
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