Wearing many hats, Ms Mary Cheung is not only a former winner of the Miss Hong Kong pageant, but also a programme host, an “Outstanding Young Person”, image consultant, and the list goes on. Back in the eighties and nineties, Ms Cheung hosted the live television programme “Crime Watch”, to assist the Police in disseminating information related to serious crimes, in order to appeal for witnesses to come forward with crime leads by calling the Police hotline.

In her interview with OffBeat, Ms Cheung said she was honoured to host “Crime Watch” and found the role very rewarding. Back then, even though she was always working overseas, she would gladly pay for her flight back to Hong Kong out of her own pocket, so she could host the programme. She said, “Hosting the programme gave me a wealth of opportunities to explore many types of highly specialised work, such as the performance of autopsies, which was really eye-opening to me. I remember how smooth the explanation provided by Mr Li Kwan-ha, the first Chinese Commissioner of Police, was when I interviewed him, during which he said that there are no second chances in each Police operation, so it is a must to ensure they hit the bull’s-eye all the time.”

Over the years, Ms Cheung has maintained a good relationship with the Police. Late last year, she acted as a speaker at a talk at the invitation of the Force’s Psychological Services Group. Despite the many challenges facing the Police in recent years, Ms Cheung has never wavered in her support for the Police to maintain public order via resolute law enforcement action.

Once the image consultant to former Secretary for Security Mrs Regina Ip, Ms Cheung subscribes to the idea that the Force needs to promote its professional image with greater vigour. She added that, “Mr Tang Ping-keung, the incumbent Commissioner, is an outstanding speaker on-screen, while the Force’s promotional film ‘Guarding Our City’ released recently is very well received.”

Ms Cheung believes that interactive skills are paramount for police officers of all ranks, especially personnel of senior management who may have to speak on camera. She said, “They should convey a firm stance when they speak, as well as underscoring the key points of cases and the messages that they want to get across. That way, their words will make a lasting impression on members of the public. When questions are put to them, they must respond squarely; when there is inaccurate information, they must waste no time in clarifying.”

Once selected as one of the “Ten Outstanding Young Persons” and having given classes on etiquette in various universities, Ms Cheung is particularly concerned about the development of youngsters. In the turmoil plaguing society earlier, Ms Cheung noticed that some youngsters had been led astray and they even took part in radical activities under peer pressure. She has a word of advice for Hong Kong’s youth—to learn to love their country. She said, “Education can instil wisdom into people, so they can tell right from wrong and lift themselves out of poverty. Young people who aspire to contribute to society need to equip themselves and enrich their learning. Besides exploring foreign cultures, they should also spend time on learning about their own country, in order to form a holistic world view. With our ebony hair and yellow skin, we are Asians, Chinese specifically, wherever we go. As Chinese people, patriotism should be a fundamental sentiment in us.”