Charice Pempengco calls for justice

Singer Charice Pempengco of the hit TV show Glee appealed yesterday for justice for her father, who was stabbed to death in her Philippine hometown, as police offered a reward and hunted for the suspect.

Pempengco flew back to the Philippines and paid respects to her father early on Wednesday. She also apologised for cancelling the rest of her tour dates, saying "my family comes first". She had been scheduled to perform in Singapore.

"Whoever did this must be brought to justice. Justice must be served, not just for my father but for everyone concerned," she told a radio interview.

Pempengco had been estranged from her father but said they had a great relationship, even though they had not had time to bond.

"I loved him and I will still love him," she wrote. "He's still my dad after all."

In an interview in 2010, Pempengco talked about the possibility of reconnecting with her father: "When he left us, I was 3 years old, and it's been 15 years now and I haven't seen or heard from him, but still, I wanna thank him because he's my dad, and I want to thank him for everything that he did, even if it's just a short time."