THE PHILIPPINE vice consul in Hong Kong Saturday said he talked on the phone with Rep. Ronald V. Singson of Ilocos Sur, who was arrested on July 11 for drug trafficking, but was unable to get any information from him.

Singson, son of Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis ?Chavit? Singson, was arrested at the baggage examination counter of Hong Kong?s Chek Lap Kok International Airport reportedly with 26.1 grams of cocaine and two tablets of diazepam, a sedative.

He has been charged with trafficking in dangerous drugs and is currently detained at Lai Chi Kok Correctional Institute.

?We were able to speak with Ronald for less than 10 minutes on the telephone but he refused to disclose where he?s from or who his next of kin is,? confirmed Vice Consul Joy Banagodos, who heads the Assistance to Nationals Section in Hong Kong. ?Hopefully, we will see him on Monday.?

?Calm, casual?

Banagodos described the phone interview as ?calm? and ?casual.?

?As of today, no family or relatives have contacted us for help since his appearance in court,? added Banagodos.

Consul General Claro Cristobal reported Representative Singson?s arrest to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila also Saturday, according to Jan Yumul, reporter of the Filipino community newspaper The Sun Hong Kong.

She added that the Philippine Consulate in Hong Kong will write a formal request to see Representative Singson face-to-face on Monday at Lai Chi Kok Correctional Institute, where security is tight.

Records obtained by Yumul from the HK Judiciary Press and Public Relations office indicated that Representative Singson appeared at the Tsuen Wan court on July 22 but did not enter a plea.

His application for bail was rejected by Principal Magistrate Ernest Lin.

Singson is scheduled to appear again in court on Aug. 19.

It was Yumul who stumbled on the case while she was going over the ?Daily Cause List? of the Hong Kong Judiciary. ?Every day I look at that list to check if there are any Filipinos. When Singson?s name showed up, I assumed he was a Filipino,? she said.

In Manila, there were speculations that the amount of cocaine allegedly found on Singson?who is also a concert promoter and owns a cable music channel?might not be for trafficking purposes, even if the 26.1 grams were a bit too much for personal consumption.

Friends, associates unaware

?People charged with trafficking are those caught bringing in drugs to Hong Kong. But if they?re apprehended while in the streets, that?s possession,? Yumul quoted Abner Sto. Domingo of the Philippine Consulate?s Assistance to Nationals Section, as saying.

Until Friday afternoon, none of Representative Singson?s friends and business associates seemed aware of his arrest and detention.

?What? Are you kidding?? said JM Rodriguez, head of cable music station Channel V which Singson owns. ?What I know is he?ll be away for a month,? he told the Inquirer on Friday.

?I was stunned. It?s so sad. I?ve known him since the 1990s,? said actor Jomari Yllana, who is Singson?s business partner in Fearless Productions, which has staged several concerts in Manila, the latest of which featured American R&B superstar Usher on July 9?two days prior to Singson?s arrest.

?That was the last time I saw him, at the Usher after-concert party in Republiq [a club in Manila]. I was supposed to go with him abroad but I had to shoot a movie,? recalled Yllana.

Lovi Poe, Representative Singson?s girlfriend, has declined further comment after initially refuting the report. With a report from Jan Yumul, The Sun Hong Kong