'S' word takes toll on Superman Jnr
VICTORIA BUTTON
The man dubbed Superman Jnr - Richard Li Tzar-kai - added the Vanishing Man to his repertoire as PCCW announced its annual results.
The company's chairman usually takes centre stage at press conferences, wrapping proceedings up with a cheerful: "Any more questions?"
But Mr Li, who last week admitted failing to graduate from Stanford University, left the limelight to his underlings this time.
He spoke briefly to analysts in a session relayed on screen to journalists 10 floors above in the firm's Quarry Bay offices but did not appear with colleagues at a subsequent press conference. The purpose of the conference, deputy chairman Francis Yuen Tin-fan explained, was to discuss the financial aspects and "we have the full team of financial people here".
But when this ended, there were many questions left unanswered - and a lot more unasked.
Thomas Crampton, the International Herald Tribune correspondent who broke the Stanford story, kept his hand in the air continuously from the start. But as the minutes passed, and his arm tired, PCCW public relations representative Joan Wagner did not call on him to put his question.
Eventually, he butted in. Had PCCW's position on the Stanford issue changed since March 19, when company secretary Donald Hess described the allegations raised as "very serious"?
Mr Yuen - who has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Chicago, according to the company - was not keen to comment. Not for the first time during the conference, he said PCCW had issued two press releases on the topic and had nothing more to add.
Crampton persisted - so the "very serious" assessment of the allegations still stood?
Mr Yuen replied that "there are many ways to look at it", raising as an example the support strategic partner Australian telecommunications giant Telstra had displayed publicly for Mr Li. "I will not make further comments on this," Mr Yuen said.
After a further question on revenue from a journalist handpicked by Ms Wagner - who later said she was trying to ensure both local and foreign reporters got to ask questions - the conference ended.
The handful of analysts who queried Mr Li earlier also focused on the financial side, none uttering the unwelcome S-word.
Nevertheless, Mr Li sighed, ummed-and-ahed and shifted in his chair. He sipped water continuously. He touched his face. He scratched his nose. He fiddled with paper and appeared on edge.
In the final analysis, it seemed some of the gloss had worn off Superman Jnr.
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