MANILA - The Philippines on Thursday ordered has ordered two members of boy band One Direction to each pay a nearly 5 000 dollar bond due to concerns over past alleged drug use.
The money will be forfeited if Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson are found to have used or promoted illegal drugs during their sold-out Manila concert at the weekend.
“The condition is intended to protect the public interest should the band members commit any violation during their stay in the Philippines,” said bureau spokesperson Elaine Tan.
“The band will be prevented from performing during the scheduled concert dates ... should the producer fail to post the cash bond prior to those dates,” she added.
The group Fight of the Filipino Family earlier asked a local court to stop the concert until the band's members take a drug test. The court dismissed their petition.
“We love One Direction,” Cherry Ching, a lawyer for the anti-drugs group, told ABS-CBN News Channel. “Personally, I would love to watch them. But the drugs, that's the issue.”
Last year, Malik and Tomlinson were filmed apparently smoking marijuana during their tour in Peru. Their On the Road Again tour has been sold-out since last year, with tickets for the Manila show going for 25 to 400 dollars.
The news comes just as Malik announced that he was taking a break from the tour.
The 22-year-old singer pulled out of a commercial recording in Hong Kong on Thursday and has flown back to the UK due to the stress of media speculation on his private life.
A spokesperson for the band told The Sun newspaper: "Zayn has 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."
His departure comes just hours after the 'Steal My Girl' hitmaker was forced to assure fans he had not cheated on his fiancé Perrie Edwards of Little Mix, having been spotted getting close with another woman while on a night out in Phuket, Thailand.
Taking to his Twitter account on Wednesday evening he said: "I'm 22 years old... I love a girl named Perrie Edwards. And there's a lot of jealous f**s in this world I'm sorry for what it looks like x (sic)."
Zayn will now be absent from the band's next three performances in Asia, but is expected to rejoin Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan for their show in Cape Town, South Africa, on March 28.
Speaking about the reasons for his temporary departure from the tour, a source said: "Zayn finds it tougher than the rest of his band-mates dealing with fame.
"Having his every movement scrutinised causes great anxiety and the pictures which surfaced with the fan yesterday was the final straw.
"He did nothing wrong but the amount of criticism he received was simply too much. He needs to get away.
"The band's management accept he needs some time off so he's been sent home with their blessing."