Only Patriots to Govern Hong Kong

Beijing wants to change Hong Kong's electoral system

As expected, the November 2019 District Council elections were the last truly democratic elections held in Hong Kong.

Almost 3 million people voted, and a stunning 17 out of 18 districts were won by pro-democratic candidates. This during the anti-government protests, a quasi referendum on how the Lam administration was governing Hong Kong.

Pan-dems trounced pro-Beijing in 2019 election

However, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor postponed last September's district council elections, claiming the coronavirus pandemic was too risky to hold an election, even though places like South Korea, and eventually the United States held theirs.

Nevertheless, Beijing was stunned by the Hong Kong results too.

And since then it has vowed to make sure it will win.

Today Xia Baolong, head of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs office said Hong Kong's administrative and electoral systems must undergo a fundamental revision to ensure only "patriots" hold key positions in all three branches of government -- the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary, as well as statutory bodies.

Instead of the mantra during the handover over 23 years ago of "Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong", it is now "patriots governing Hong Kong". 

"Key posts under every circumstance must not be taken up by anyone "who goes against China and disrupts Hong Kong," Xia said, referring to the three branches of government, and the statutory bodies.

Xia says only patriots can be in government

"Those who stand in opposition to patriots are destroyers of the 'one country, two systems' principle and they should not be allowed to take a share of the Hong Kong special administrative region's political power. Not now, not ever."

With that kind of language, how can anyone be an effective opposition, even if it is just to hold the Hong Kong government accountable? 

This puts the pro-Beijing camp in the current legislature in a curious bind as well. Since the pan-democratic camp resigned en masse late last year, the pro-establishment lawmakers are stuck having to question the government on bills and legislation, so does that make them less patriotic?

While Xia says "Different political opinions are allowed in this country", he adds, "The CCP is the creator and leader of the 'one country, two systems' model. Isn't it contradictory for someone who safeguards [the model] to oppose its creator and leader?"

So are different political opinions still allowed?

He claimed anti-China and radical separatist forces had entered Hong Kong's governance structure through various elections, including that of the Legislative Council, the Chief Executive Election Committee, and district councils, and so it was necessary for electoral reforms.

Which of these three is a radical separatist?

Could Xia please explain the radical separatist forces in the CE election? All three candidates, Lam, former financial secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and retired judge Woo Kwok-hing were vetted to be politically correct before they began campaigning...

Xia also said these electoral reforms were necessary to improve people's livelihoods. That's a stretch. The government's reticence to acknowledge one in five people live below the poverty line is the problem, not political leanings.

 In any event, even before Xia said this, many Hongkongers have declared their patriotism by saying, "I f**king love Hong Kong".

But perhaps that's not enough to pass Xia's patriotism test...

Lam's Insincerity Shines Through

A pale-looking Carrie Lam personally apologizes to Hong Kong people

This afternoon was the main event -- Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was going to apologize to the Hong Kong people.

Reporters noticed her lectern had boxes of tissues ready. Would she be really sincere and cry?

At 4pm she appeared in a cream-coloured suit in front of a light blue screen. Right off the bat she apologized for her short-comings and said she had heard the voices of the people.

But then for the rest of the 51 minutes, Lam refused to withdraw the extradition bill, refused to resign, and refused to hold an independent inquiry into allegations the police were too heavy handed when they clashed with protesters and the media on June 12.

She did say the bill was shelved as long as there were "conflicts in society", so does that mean forever? Or until her term is over?

Some 2 million people took over the streets on Sunday

Lam admitted she would have a difficult three years ahead in governing Hong Kong, though protesters outside the Legislative Council were unimpressed by her speech and booed.

Many people in Hong Kong feel she has lost the mandate to lead the city, as evidenced by the 2 million people who came out to protest two days ago. She totally mishandled the campaign to have the extradition law passed, and then refused to take responsibility for the excessive force the police used.

She only clarified that the protest march last Sunday was not considered a riot, echoing Police Commissioner Stephen Lo wai-chung's position as he yesterday backed down from his original declaration that the protesters were rioters. This came after there was an outcry when police began going into hospitals and arresting rioters, and even in dormitories on university campuses.

In total 32 people were arrested since last Wednesday.

There was no admission by Lam that the police's firing of 150 rounds of tear gas (87 were fired in the 2014 Occupy protests), "several" rounds of rubber bullets, and 20 bean bag shots that can easily injure someone was too much force against protesters who didn't have much protection let alone "weapons" to confront the police.

Protesters booed while Lam spoke in the press conference

So how can Lam say she has listened to the people and pledged to do a better job for the next three years when she has not acceded to any of the protesters' demands?

This was what was most disappointing to the 2 million people who flooded into the streets on Sunday. She really didn't listen to them. By extension, Beijing didn't listen to them.

But by the same token, Lam is between a rock and a hard place.

Even if she wanted to resign, Beijing may not let her. According to a Reuters report, a senior Hong Kong official close to Lam said [if she resigned] that would "create more problems than it solves, at all sorts of levels".

Hmmm let me guess? Because there is no one else suitable to take over this thankless job, though the best part is that the chief executive is paid more than the president of the United States?

Already before the press conference, Bloomberg was speculating who would be waiting in the wings. Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee is one candidate, so is former chief executive Leung Chun-ying, former CE candidate John Tsang Chun-wah, and even Jasper Tsang Yok-sing, the former Legco president.

Would you like any of these four to take over from Lam?

When Lam took questions from reporters, none of them asked her how she felt when the Chinese ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming said last week that Beijing never instructed the Hong Kong government to pass the extradition bill.

"As a matter of fact, [the] Beijing central government gave no instruction, no order about making [the] amendment. This amendment was initiated by the Hong Kong government, it was prompted by a murder case in Taiwan," he told the BBC.

Talk about throwing Lam under the bus. China really wanted to be perceived to have any connection with the extradition bill, but why would she suddenly want to ram it through?

Regardless, the public will not stand for Lam to continue leading Hong Kong, which means there are going to be more protests in the coming days and weeks.

Hope Lam's ready for more images of people on the streets. They have had enough of the insincerity and lack of integrity.

The Perils of being Overpaid

Carrie Lam paid a dozen students HK$100 an hour to work on her campaign

It's been revealed that chief executive-elect Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor paid students up to HK$100 an hour to help her on her campaign. That amounts to HK$20,000 a month.

That salary amount is about 33 percent higher than the average starting salary for fresh graduates, or three times the minimum wage.

Not only were there students visible on stage with her to show that she was in touch with young people as part of her "We Connect" campaign, there were several working behind the scenes, a dozen in total that were paid.

One of them made HK$20,000 a month.

Laurence Li Lu-jen, deputy director of Lam's campaign office, defended paying the students, saying they did a lot of work, from filing documents to data compilation.

"Paying them is a recognized token for their commitments. It is wrong to undervalue our youngsters," Li said. He added that the other young people at Lam's rally were volunteers, and no one was paid just to show up at the event.

While John Tsang Chun-wah's campaign office claimed they did not recruit students, there were some student volunteers who were not paid.

It is believed Lam's campaign cost more than HK$11 million, under the maximum of HK$15.7 million for campaign expenses.

Nevertheless we question why students should be paid up to HK$20,000, when the market rate is much less.

The reason is that these students will think they are worth HK$20,000 and will be severely disappointed when they find out the reality is that their salary should be much less.

It's much like a friend of mine who is looking to hire someone under her, and the company had an "internal reference", which is code for a son or daughter whose parents are friends of the owners.

She did interview this fresh graduate who was found to be suitable for the job, but my friend's bosses will pay this person HK$20,000 for a job that should be around $12,000-HK$15,000.

Hopefully this "internal reference" will be a good employee, but when he or she tries to find another job, they will wonder why they can't find a better paying job.

Jacking up salaries for young people does a disservice to them and to the employer.

But alas these kinds of "internal references" are common in Hong Kong... we can only hope these kids understand the reality of the situation, that they are very lucky to have really good paying jobs that people with more qualifications and experience should be doing...

Election Aftermath

Is Carrie Lam wondering how she will govern such a divided city?

Yesterday I spent four hours watching the election for the chief executive on Facebook Live, and I shouldn't have wasted that time when we already knew who the winner was.

But I was curious to see how many votes Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor would get, and shocked she did get well over 750 votes. I was also very surprised her rival John Tsang Chun-wah could barely break 400.

Several people were screwed over in this election, which makes it a bitter one.

What will Regina Ip do now? Will she change tact?

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee has been a loyal pro-establishment supporter. What did she get for consistently towing the party line? She was outright rejected by Beijing at the nomination stage.

What will she do next? Will she continue to speak on behalf of "Western"? Or will she think she has nothing to lose and become more centrist?

The same goes for Tsang. Whatever he does, we hope he doesn't set up yet another think tank. The last thing we need is another body that churns out research papers that no one reads.

Sadly Woo Kwok-hing had a terrible showing in the polls. He was a refreshing voice prodding the two other candidates to justify their actions or in-actions, and speak for the average person who is keen on justice and rule of law. It's just too bad he wasn't well versed enough in policy.

Luckily for him, he was already retired, so he will probably go back to his calligraphy, which he does very well, by the way.

Tonight nine Occupy activists reported to the police

Chief executive-elect Lam was screwed over by incumbent Leung Chun-ying. It was reported that hours after her win, police contacted organizers of the Occupy movement to tell them they would be arrested. As of around 7pm this evening, the nine contacted arrived at Wan Chai Police Station.

Just as when Lam said yesterday she would try to mend the rifts in society, this latest action by Leung's administration sabotages her chance to smooth divisions in the city. Joshua Wong Chi-fung, one of the student leaders in 2014, says both Leung and Lam are polarizing society.

The resoluteness of the government will only harden the stance of localists and create further tensions. Maybe Leung is worried people will forget him when he leaves office?

Meanwhile the people of Hong Kong have clearly witnessed Beijing manipulating the winner of the election. Beijing officials actively lobbied Li Ka-shing while Ricky Chim Kim-lung, who had nominated Tsang, was approached by liaison officers to change his vote.

This kind of manipulation and heavy handedness does little to earn Hong Kong people's trust in Beijing. This is the real crux of the problem. The more the mainland meddles with what's going on in the city, the more locals get agitated and upset because they were promised "one country, two systems", but it seems less and less that way.

After the election results were in, many Hong Kong people voiced their disappointment, anger, frustration, and sadness on Facebook. Some lamented, saying "Hong Kong is dead", or that they were going to emigrate, or "Today is a dark day".

As one acquaintance pointed out, the election did not affect his daily life at all -- Hong Kong will continue to run the way it has been going, that it's not the end of the world. He was tired of people being so emotional and venting knee-jerk reactions on social media.

While things don't seem to bode well for all of us considering all the issues at hand, we can try to make Hong Kong a better place starting with our own circles of communities, with friends, family, colleagues at work. In the end that's what really matters. We're all in this together, so let's make the most of what we have and fight for what we believe in.

Hong Kong's New Leader

Pre-ordained Carrie Lam is now confirmed as Hong Kong's next leader

It was expected from the beginning, but it is now confirmed Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is Hong Kong's next chief executive with 777 votes -- far more than her predecessor and former boss Leung Chun-ying with 689.

John Tsang Chun-wah, the public's favourite, only got over 365 votes, while Woo Kwok-hing had 21.

Xinhua News Agency already reported Lam's win minutes after the initial vote count, since she surpassed the 600 votes very easily.

When news that Lam had won had won by a far margin was announced, there were cheers and jeers from the audience in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Obviously the pro-establishment (pro-business) are pleased to vote in the person they believe will help them continue to prosper in the city, while those related to the pan-democratic camp shouted, "I want universal suffrage!" as this small-circle election is hardly democratic.

There are concerns now of how she will govern the city where she is highly unpopular, seen as a distant person who doesn't give the appearance of caring much for the poor, as she claimed she was too tired to visit Tin Shui Wai, a district known for its challenging social and economic issues.

When the official results were announced, there were whoops of joy from most of the audience. On stage, Lam looked teary-eyed, hugging Tsang a few times. Maybe he was saying, "Better you than me"?

In any event if the critics will have a go at her, at least they can use the number 7 -- it's slang for flaccid penis... and she got 777 of them...

Finally the Showdown

Thousands showed their support for John Tsang on Friday evening in Central

This is it -- the campaigns by the three candidates to become Hong Kong's next chief executive are over and the voting begins tomorrow.

There wasn't much mudslinging unless you call Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor's husband having to come out and deny he had a mistress digging up dirt a mini scandal.

On Friday her rival John Tsang Chun-wah had an open double-decker bus roam around Hong Kong spouting his campaign slogans and in the evening ended in a huge rally in Central by City Hall.

He gave a passionate speech that appealed to several thousand people who showed up.

Carrie Lam's last day on the campaign trail

"Most of you here don't have votes, but still I yearn for your support. Without your support, how would there be any meaning even if I win all Election Committee votes?"

Tsang definitely came across as the every man to the middle class -- oh wait -- his definition is that they drink coffee and watch French movies. And probably eat from food trucks.

But does anyone remember he was conspicuously absent during the Occupy protests? What does he have to say about that? Does he really represent us? Or is he filling the void that Lam can't be bothered to, or isn't capable of doing because she has no clue where to buy toilet paper?

Meanwhile there are reports that on paper Lam has secured 750 votes for tomorrow, but Tsang believes a good chunk of those votes could at the last minute switch to him, seeing as he has a greater popularity with the public than she does.

While public opinion does matter to a degree, Beijing has strongly hinted it wants Lam to become the city's next leader.

Is Tung Chee-hwa showing who his preferred candidate is?

From former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa giving her a bear hug early on, to senior Chinese officials having meetings with some of the Election Committee in Shenzhen that its preferred candidate was Lam, it's quite obvious she is expected to win tomorrow.

Then why even bother having this "small circle" election, when only less than 1,200 people get to vote?

If this is Beijing's idea of a "democracy", we want no part of it, which is why the pan-democrats voted down the electoral reform. While everyone would be able to vote, they would only be able to choose from approved candidates by Beijing.

It's kind of a no-win situation for Hong Kong -- Beijing will always insist it get things its way. There are no compromises.

Protests have been planned tomorrow if and when Lam wins... maybe that's enough to scare voters into putting their money on Tsang. While he has the popular vote, would he have Beijing's blessing?

We will find out tomorrow...

One More Verbal Joust Before Vote

Carrie Lam, John Tsang and Woo Kwok-hing try to sway voters one last time

The final chief executive debate was held this evening at AsiaWorld-Expo with some 400 people from the Election Committee attending. They were given the opportunity to directly pose questions to the three candidates -- Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, John Tsang Chun-wah and Woo Kwok-hing.

Interestingly their responses were timed so that in the end all three had the equal amount of time to speak.

I watched the debate on hk01's Facebook Live and whenever Lam was speaking, there was a flood of angry-faced icons flowing across the screen, which contrasted with Tsang, who had lots of happy faces, as well as Woo.

However, in the audience, Lam got a lot of applause from the mainly pro-Beijing camp.

Again Tsang came out swinging at Lam, using any opportunity he could to discredit her, or try to show that she was not as an effective leader as he was.

He said that you can work hard, but you have to work smart -- to which he got a lot of applause from the audience. He hinted that while she worked hard, she was probably taking on too much and insisting that things be done her way.

On the other hand Lam hit back saying she was envious of Tsang because when they were colleagues, his desk would always be clean with nothing on it, while hers had piles of files on it she had to go through.

Tsang also gave the example that he had a lot of support from former colleagues who volunteered their time to help his campaign and he was grateful for their support -- did Lam have anyone helping her?

She claimed that getting her former underlings to help would have been difficult for them as it would have caused divisions among them socially as they met for dinners. Is she trying to make this more political than it need be?

Woo chimed in that he did have support from his colleagues, but being in the legal circles, they were low key and didn't want to make their support public, which got a lot of laughs and applause.

Lam tried to show that she was active in visiting Hong Kong's various districts and hinted that Tsang didn't show up once, but he did as far back as December 2013, but that time he was pelted with an egg by a protester which might have turned him off from future visits...

She also said that she was invited to meet with ethnic minorities once -- but Woo countered by saying he had at three meetings with them -- so where was she the other two times? Touche!

At times it felt like Tsang and Woo were tag-teaming against Lam.

But in general Tsang had the upper hand overall because of his knowledge of policies, while Woo doesn't have that experience and could only speak from a legal perspective. He tried to discredit Lam by saying if she was a witness in a court case, she would not be a trustworthy one... but the court of law and the court of public opinion when it comes to politics are two different things.

We want our politicians to be honest, but we know they cannot do that 100 percent of the time. Woo took a dig at her, saying she would have to pay back her tycoon supporters somehow...

The vote will be held in a week and 7 million of us have no say, but just under 1,200 people do. This is not a fair election, but here we are again, five years later going through the motions again.

As Tsang said in his closing remarks, we thought we voted for the best person, but that turned out not to be the case (referring to his former boss, Leung Chun-ying). Tsang explained earlier that Lam is CY Leung 2.0 because she has similar policies and nothing new to add. The former financial secretary said it would not be good for Hong Kong to have someone like this again, and have to wait another five years for change.

What is Beijing going to do? Tsang definitely has the popular vote, while pro-establishment are told to vote for Lam. However, some critics believe Tsang won't create much change either, having been a seasoned civil servant for decades. And what about him saving up so much money in the reserves only to be spent on white elephant public works projects instead of allocating more resources to the people who need it most -- the poor, ethnic minorities, and first time home buyers who need an extra hand.

We'll have to see what happens next Sunday. Bickering among ourselves isn't going to get us anywhere either...

Arthur Li Dismisses John Tsang as CE

Arthur Li says John Tsang isn't the best person to be the leader of Hong Kong

Arthur Li Kwok-cheung can't help himself from bad mouthing Chief Executive candidate John Tsang Chun-wah.

The professor who is an Executive Council member of Hong Kong and a delegate of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, says Tsang gives the public the impression he is a "gentle and nice guy", but that the city's next leader had to be more than that, adding that Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor fits the bill.

"Carrie is extremely hands on, very dedicated and will tackle problems. She will not shy away from difficulties. John is a very nice person, he will sit back, relax and let you get on with it," explained Li.

Li says Carrie Lam is more diligent at getting the work done

He said having a laid-back management style was the worst thing for Hong Kong, which is facing stiff competition from Singapore, Shenzhen and Shanghai.

"Executive Council members have worked with [Lam and Tsang] for a number of years and have seen how they performed. I do not think a single Exco member is supporting Tsang," said Li in Beijing.

Li cited examples of how issues were handled by Tsang, such as HKTV not getting its free-to-air license, Cable TV is shutting down, and how the recently debuted food trucks in the city aren't working out well. "It's disaster after disaster after disaster," he said.

While Tsang came up with the idea of having food trucks in Hong Kong, it was Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Gregory So Kam-leung who implemented it, but less than a month in, some operators are complaining about the locations and the lack of customers. One operator has already decided to quit even before rolling out his food truck, despite having paid for it.

John Tsang came up with the idea of food trucks in HK

However, Tsang has said in a previous interview that teamwork and mutual trust are important.

"I rely on my people to do things because... the people you appoint are the people you should trust," he said. "If you don't trust them, why appoint them? And if you appoint them, but you still don't trust them, there must be an issue in your judgment."

Interesting that Li is so outspoken and critical of Tsang -- is he a proxy for Leung Chun-ying, whom Li supported in 2012? For his loyalty, Li was rewarded with an appointment to the governing board of the University of Hong Kong, a move that was strongly criticized by academics in the institution.

May we also add he is the younger brother of David Li Kwok-po, chairman of BEA Bank, and they are the grandsons of the bank's co-founder, Li Koon-chun.

There probably aren't many people on the fence who need to be swayed in this three-horse race -- people on the Election Committee pretty much know who they are voting for. Maybe Hong Kong people want an easy-going guy?

Elections with Chinese Characteristics

It is expected Carrie Lam will win the election, but by how many votes?

Beijing seems to be fretting over the "election" of the next chief executive of Hong Kong, because it is worried that its preferred candidate Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor may not have an outright win.

According to an anonymous source who is a local member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference who has met with senior leaders in Beijing, said they are concerned that their lobbying for Lam may have a negative impact on her.

John Tsang is giving Lam a run for her money, and Beijing too

Last week Lam also voiced concern for Beijing outright lobbying for her, saying she would discreetly tell them not to do it, knowing it could affect her votes as well as the public's perception of her.

The anonymous source said Lam may have trouble governing effectively because her rival John Tsang Chun-wah has greater popularity with the public than her. "But they [Beijing] said they have no choice under current circumstances", the source said.

These revelations behind the scenes show how desperate Beijing is to orchestrate the election, but yet Tsang seems to be throwing a spanner in the works which is interesting.

But why is Beijing so worried?

Its preferred candidate will win -- she already garnered 579 nominations, way more than both Tsang (159) and Woo Kwok-hing (180).

Woo Kwok-hing is popular with locals as well as Tsang

How about worrying about how she is going to persuade the public in televised debates how she is going to represent the average person, and stand up for Hong Kong's interests? That's what people care about, and Woo and Tsang already focused on getting the popular vote as a vital part of their strategy. They didn't have the guanxi, but they have local appeal. Lam has the opposite.

Lam may not win on the first ballot, but she will definitely on the second.

For Beijing to worry so much about this reveals how it cannot even deal with democracy at all. No wonder they keep delaying it!

Hong Kong in Li Keqiang's Report

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivering his annual work report today

This morning Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivered his work report at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress in Beijing.

The 20,000 word report took him about 90 minutes to read out, but journalists who have a hard copy of it can skim through it in minutes.

Towards the end Li talked about Hong Kong, and he continued the familiar refrain of upholding the "one country, two systems" principle, and that it be applied "without being bent or distorted".

What does he mean by that curious clause?

In the past 20 years we've seen an erosion of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong, but perhaps Beijing sees it another way.

Li said independence will "lead nowhere" in Hong Kong

Nevertheless, for the first time in his work report, Li spoke about Hong Kong independence, saying the movement would "lead nowhere".

It was perhaps inevitable the Premier would mention this issue, following the swearing in fiasco involving Sixtus Baggio Leung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-ching of Youngspiration, who pledged allegiance to a "Hong Kong nation" and called China insulting names the Japanese used during World War II.

That resulted in the National People's Congress Standing Committee to rule that making "insincere" oath-taking punishable by instant disqualification. Leung and Yau were later stripped of their seats in the Legislative Council.

There is a law suit under way to further disqualify four more pan-democrats...

In Li's address he said: "We will continue to implement, both to the letter and in spirit, the principle of one country, two systems, under which Hong Kong people govern Hong Kong."

He also added the Basic Law would be followed in Hong Kong and Macau. "The notion of independence will lead nowhere," he said.

Leung set to be rewarded in stopping independence

And to reward Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying for his efforts in quelling the independence movement, Yu Zhengsheng, the fourth most senior leader in China's Communist Party and chairman of the government's political advisory, said Leung will become a delegate to the advisory body.

In reality the independence movement in Hong Kong is a tiny minority. Did Leung exaggerate how serious this group was in order to be rewarded with such a post? Or is this just another way to give him a bone for not running for Chief Executive again?

Beijing is also mum about its preference of who will become the city's next chief executive. In a meeting with Hong Kong and Macau delegates, Zhang Dejiang, the National People's Congress chairman reiterated Beijing's four criteria for Hong Kong's next leader: he or she must "love the country and love Hong Kong", be trusted by Beijing, be capable of governing, and be supported by the Hong Kong people.

Oh and by the way, Zhang added, Beijing has "substantive and constitutional power" to appoint the next leader.

Does this mean John Tsang Chun-wah and Woo Kwok-hing still have a decent chance?

We'll find out March 26...

Out on the Hustings

Carrie Lam's husband (left) denies having any extramarital affairs in the UK

The race to become the next chief executive of Hong Kong is well underway, and all three candidates are out on the hustings trying to shore up as many votes as possible for the March 26 election.

Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor's husband has already come out to quash rumours that he has a mistress in Britain. Lam Siu-por was asked by Citizen News portal if he had had any affairs before, to which he replied: "I can tell you all that I have no such problems. I have a very close relationship with Mrs Lam."

What kind of question is that?! If there were any pictures or videos of Lam Siu-por with another woman then maybe the media would be justified in asking that, but to ask that outright is bizarre.

Pan-democrats already vow to vote for John Tsang

He had told Apple Daily that such rumours probably arose because he spent so much time in the UK looking after their two sons while she was working in Hong Kong.

Meanwhile the pan-democrats on the Election Committee have decided en masse to put all their 326 votes towards Lam's rival John Tsang Chun-wah. While that's a nice gesture, he would still need 275 votes to win.

All of his nominations were from the pan-democratic camp so he'll have to work hard to get some pro-establishment votes...

Although Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee is out of the race, she is still focusing her energy on criticizing Lam as running a "shallow campaign".

"[The campaign] is insincere, making people feel that it is a facade," Ip said.

Regina Ip continues to attack Carrie Lam in the media

Ouch.

Ip added she felt Lam would not govern Hong Kong well even if she had 800 votes.

"It's too simplistic to say a high vote count could result in effective governance. It is ignorant of the deep-seated problems facing Hong Kong," she said.

Sounds like someone is either a sore loser, or is trying to prove someone is a paper tiger, or trying to piss off Beijing for not cutting her losses earlier.

The next three weeks are going to have a lot of fodder for people to chew on...

John Tsang Reveals Small Details

John Tsang reveals why he quit his job as Finance Secretary under CY Leung

Now we know why John Tsang Chun-wah quit his job as Financial Secretary to run for the next Chief Executive of Hong Kong.

He finally revealed that he quit in December after he had a row with Leung Chun-ying over the government budget. Tsang said Leung wanted to multiply the amount of new money earmarked for the next few years which would result in a deficit.

Tsang had told Sing Tao Daily on Thursday that he quit because he was unhappy but did not elaborate, and that he only thought of running for CE after he quit the job.

Today he was asked again by the media why he quit, and Tsang replied: It's not about one single incident. It's accumulated over time."

Since Paul Chan Mo-po has taken over the finance post, his first budget reveals there will be a deficit thanks to many infrastructure projects. Chan also decided not to put money into the Future Fund that Tsang had set up in 2015 for rainy days, instead spending it on welfare and sports.

Interesting that Tsang gives this curious bit of information that reveals more about himself and his ex-boss. While Tsang is right to be as fiscally prudent as possible, he was quite extreme about this -- Hong Kong is much wealthier than many cities, let alone countries!

So we can expect Tsang to be fiscally conservative if he wins as the next Chief Executive?

Number of the Day: 579

Carrie Lam has definitely secured her name on the ballot for the CE election

Hong Kong Chief Executive contender Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor must have been an overachiever as a kid because today she handed in a whopping 579 nominations to the Electoral Affairs Office be eligible for next month's election.

She only needed a minimum of 150 nominations. Her rival John Tsang had 156, and Woo Kwok-hing 179.

Surely Tung Chee-hwa's hug is a big hint from Beijing?

Some say she did that to quash Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee's chances, others say it's just in her nature to get A++ on everything. We're not in school, Carrie. And this isn't the real race -- that's next month!

The real work begins now, getting out into the hustings and trying to get 601 votes on March 26.

While people may nominate her now, it doesn't mean she has 579 votes in the bag.

Many worry she is CY Leung 2.0, while others are resigned to the hints from Beijing that she is the preferred candidate. As the vast majority of us aren't allowed to vote, we'd at least like to see her work for her votes.

Lam didn't handle negotiations with the students well in 2014

Her handling of the recent Palace Museum fiasco isn't going as smoothly as she had hoped, and the vestiges of the Occupy protests are continuing to haunther too.

Not everyone is as enamoured of her as Beijing had hoped...

A Three-Horse Race

Big smiles from John Tsang securing enough nominations to run for CE

It's not even Wednesday yet and two chief executive hopefuls have already submitted their formal nominations.

Former Finance Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah beat the pack (and almost tripped) on the way to the electoral office on Saturday with a submission of 160 nominees, even though the requirement is 150.

Woo Kwok-hing is also formally in the race with 156 nods

While Tsang has the popular vote among the public for his easy-going attitude, interest in sports, and apparently coffee and French movies, he only managed to bag 10 nominations from the pro-Beijing camp, which doesn't seem to bode well in the election next month if he is to beat Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor.

Former Justice Woo Kwok-hing is also formally in the race too with 156 nominations. Upon receiving the forms to apply, Woo said it was "his happiest moment" since he declared his candidacy and he would strive to bring democracy to Hong Kong.

Lam has said she will give in her nomination on Wednesday, even though she has apparently secured 300 nominations already. Sounds like she is hoping for extra brownie points.

And as we covered here yesterday Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee is far behind, but continues to try to get more nominations though her chances are slim.

Leung Kwok-hung didn't even get enough public support

But she's not the last one -- "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung is faring even worse than her with not even enough public support to suggest he should run. He had hoped to get 38,000 names from the public, but only got 20,234.

Thank goodness that embarrassment is over. While he thought he would offer an alternative, he was seriously not even a decent candidate. See, the public knows how the game works.

It looks like it'll be a three-horse race and we hope it'll get feisty with Woo holding Tsang and Lam accountable for what they have done or not done. We've already had a few crooks in office, we don't need more...

Bow-tie Tsang Begins 20-Month Prison Term

Donald Tsang (in handcuffs) was escorted to court for sentencing today

Donald Tsang Yam-kuen heard his fate this morning and the judge handed him a 20-month sentence behind bars. Tsang is now the first knighted and highest-ranked official to be convicted for misconduct.

"Never in my judicial career have I seen a man fallen from so high," said Justice Andrew Chan Hing-wai. Tsang closed his eyes as he heard the sentence, while his wife Selina of almost 50 years began to cry in the public gallery.

The judge was originally going to sentence him to 30 months, but after receiving over 40 letters of mitigation from people like former Secretary for Administration Anson Chan Fong On-sang, pan-democrat Albert Ho Chun-yan, and chief executive hopefuls Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and John Tsang Chun-wah, Justice Chan lowered Tsang's jail time to 20 months.

Tsang's wife Selina cried upon hearing the 20-month jail term

Justice Chan said Tsang had breached the trust placed in him by both the people of Hong Kong and the people of China.

The prosecution has already indicated it will retry the charge of misconduct regarding the alleged HK$3.35 million in renovations on his Shenzhen apartment in exchange for approving Wave Media applications when the jury failed to reach a verdict last week.

People have mixed reactions about the sentencing. Some feel Tsang didn't do any harm to anyone and so he should receive a lighter sentence, or none at all. But he was the leader of Hong Kong -- there are expectations our senior officials are supposed to exercise strong moral judgment not only on what's best for the city, but also of their own behaviour.

While he did a lot of good for Hong Kong in his 45-year career with the government, he was caught red-handed hanging out with tycoons on one of their yachts in Macau. He tried to worm his way out of it, but the evidence was stark.

Rafael Hui is serving a 7.5 year jail sentence for bribery

Tsang's sentence sets a precedence so that all civil servants know that they cannot take advantage of their positions for personal gain. If he didn't do any time for that, then we might see even more corruption cases.

But now we're two for two -- Rafael Hui Si-yan, and now Tsang. They may be reunited in Stanley prison too.

Two is already too many -- why does Hong Kong have people like this in office? More importantly why has Beijing chosen these people?

Seeing the intense media interest in Tsang's trial shows that senior officials must prove their worth, otherwise they too will suffer the same fate -- the humiliation of having fallen from so high.

Mr Pringles' Platform and Zhang Dejiang's Meetings

John Tsang officially announced his platform today

Everyone's eagerly talking about the race for the next chief executive of Hong Kong. While many believe it will be Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor who has the upper hand, they have a preference for former Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah.

They call him "potato chips" because he looks like the logo of Pringles chips, a man with a moustache known as "Julius Pringles". Many feel he is more down to earth than Lam, who revealed how out of touch she was when she took a taxi in the middle of the night from her Convention Centre serviced apartment back to her old digs on The Peak to get toilet paper.

Tsang revealed his platform today, promising electoral reform, but also he would enact Article 23, the contentious law on national security that was shelved in 2003. He would give tax breaks to SMEs and allowances for low-income families.

Some believe that he is still favoured by Beijing, otherwise why was he kept on as financial secretary when Leung Chun-ying became Chief Executive? They think that Beijing had a hand in having Tsang stay on...

Zhang Dejiang had meetings with Hong Kong heavyweights

A friend said she liked Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee and we asked her why. She said she's a hard worker, and she has had a tough life -- her husband died young so she was a single parent raising her daughter. As for trying to implement Article 23, she was only doing what she was told to do.

Others like former judge Woo Kwok-hing's personality, but feel he might be "too delicate" to do the job of chief executive in terms of health. They fear another Tung Chee-hwa situation would happen. But he definitely has better Chinese calligraphy skills than the other three candidates.

Adding to the mix is the National People's Congress chairman Zhang Dejiang, who is also the state leader overseeing Hong Kong affairs, go to Shenzhen to meet with influential Hong Kong businessmen and pro-Beijing political parties.

His visit comes a week before the nomination period for the next chief executive begins next Tuesday.

While people who attended the meetings refused to divulge what was said, they would only say it was normal for Beijing to want to know people's opinions on things.

Uh huh.

John Tsang biting into his pineapple bun in Tsim Sha Tsui

The fact the visit was announced after the fact is also curious, but we will leave it at that.

In any event, the other day Tsang visited one of the first three food trucks that have opened for business in Tsim Sha Tsui and got a pineapple bun for HK$20. While he said it tasted good, it was expensive for HK$20.

Excuse me? Isn't he the one who wanted to bring food trucks to Hong Kong? It ain't cheap to set it up, at a minimum of HK$600,000 in start-up costs alone.

Maybe his platform should include measures to prevent landlords from jacking up rents so that small local eateries won't go out of business!

Carrie Lam Officially in the Race

Carrie Lam unveils her slogan, "We Connect", but what does that mean?

This afternoon former Chief Secretary Carrie Lam ChengYuet-ngor officially threw her hat into the race to become the next Chief Executive of Hong Kong.

She made the announcement at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, and managed to round up a big support base that featured a number of tycoons, such as Peter Woo Kwong-ching, retired Wheelock and Wharf Holdings chairman, Stewart Leung Chi-kin, chairman of the Real Estate Developers Association's executive committee, businessman Allan Zeman, Lee Shau-kee, Henderson Land chairman, and Robert Kuok, founder of the Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts.

So the developers must have been rubbing their hands with glee when hearing Lam promising to ease the housing issue with more land for homes.

Kan stands among some business heavyweights for a photo

Political heavy weights were there too, like Elsie Leung Oi-sie, vice-chairwoman of the Basic Law Committed of the National People's Congress, and Maria Tam Wai-chu, local deputy to the National People's Congress.

However, not a single pan-democrat was seen at the event.

On stage Lam ditched her usual serious demeanor and tried to look energetic, with a group of young people behind her, all of them wearing T-shirts that read: "We Connect". Connect to what? Certainly not the rest of us. Perhaps she means she connects with Beijing?

Lam tried to give a more down-to-earth picture of herself, talking about how she was raised in Wan Chai and remembers how her parents worked so hard so that they could afford a flat in Quarry Bay.

She got a few people to vouch for her, including elder son Jeremy, who flew down from Beijing for the event. At first he wasn't enthusiastic about his mother's political ambitions, but apparently has now turned around. Interesting her other son and husband didn't make any public endorsements.

In her speech she recalled how her family was so optimistic about the future, as if a hint to suggest she could bring back that positive attitude.

John Tsang seems more popular with average people

But how is she going to do that? She is not seen as a grassroots person -- taking a taxi in the middle of the night up to her former residence at The Peak because she didn't now where to buy toilet paper. And Lam didn't seem sympathetic when she represented the government during the 2014 Umbrella Protests when it had a meeting with the student leaders during a televised showdown.

Nevertheless, word on the street is that Lam is the favourite to win the election in March. But you never know -- one misstep and things could sway in favour of second favourite John Tsang Chun-wah. He appears to be the one the public favours for his easy-going attitude and seems to be more of a local guy despite going to school in the United States.

So has the race begin in earnest now? We the people who are unable to cast a ballot can only watch from the sidelines. With four candidates, it's already an interesting race.

A Leg-Up on the Competition?

Regina Ip gamely showing off her matching boots to host Stephen Chan

The race for the next chief executive of Hong Kong is already more interesting.

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee made an appearance on Commercial Radio this morning and the visit was captured on Facebook Live.

The host, Stephen Chan Chi-wan has been getting each of the candidates to do something different to show another side of them, like having Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and John Tsang Chun-wah take off their glasses.

Carrie Lam had trouble using her Octopus to Ap Lei Chau

However, Ip didn't have any because she claims she can still see quite well. Nevertheless the observant Chan noted that Ip's outfit, footwear and handbag were all matching, in a peacock blue.

She obliged, showing off the handbag and then pushed her chair back before holding up her leg with her hands to present the same blue coloured heeled boots.

Talk about trying to get a leg-up on the competition.

Her assistant later revealed the boots were bought at Lane Crawford for HK$1,000 two years ago. Interestingly no price quoted for the handbag.

Who else has matching clothes, shoes and handbags except maybe the Queen and the Duchess of Cornwall?

Lam recently moved to Convention Plaza in Wan Chai

After flashing some leg, Ip held up two Octopus cards, one for parking and one (we should note for seniors) to use on the MTR.

Chan asked her if she knew how to take the MTR to which she confidently replied affirmative.

It was a jab at Lam, who didn't seem to know how to use her Octopus card when she took the MTR to Ap Lei Chau to visit the community there.

Lam also bizarrely revealed that she ran out of toilet paper after recently moving into a serviced apartment in the Convention Centre, and that she took a taxi in the middle of the night to get some.

There were questions of how much carbon footprint she generated from her quest for TP, but isn't it more important that Lam be more familiar with the MTR?

If she doesn't really know how to use the MTR, how can she even begin to understand the issues the average Hong Kong person faces on a daily basis?

Commuters wait for many trains before getting on at rush hour

Every CE candidate should take the MTR at rush hour and see what it's like. It's no joke that one has to wait at least four or five trains to go by before getting on, and how commuters are squashed in there like sardines.

And they should visit people who live in subdivided flats, spending up to half of their salary on rent even though the living conditions are appalling. Why is it that when banks lend money for mortgages, the applicant cannot spend more than half their salary on the monthly payment back to the bank, but this rule is not applied to rents?

And they should see how much waste is generated on a daily basis, how many items are not recycled, and see how much food is dumped from households, restaurants and hotels, and how non-profits are trying to salvage a tiny fraction of that food, but more needs to be done.

The list could go on and on.

But we really have to give to Ip today for having a bit more fun, being game to show off what a fashion plate she is, though she did have to use her hand to raise her leg, which made us wonder where her core is...

Chinese New Year Countdown

Many people checking out the New Year market in Victoria Park today

Many people in Hong Kong are anxiously preparing for Chinese New Year on Saturday. The wet market near where I live was extra busy, with people buying up all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and meats to prepare for upcoming reunion dinners this week, though officially it's on Friday.

And today was the start of the Chinese New Year markets around town, the biggest of which is in Victoria Park in Causeway Bay. I checked it out this afternoon and luckily it wasn't packed, though still lots of people.

Vibrant-coloured orchids for sale as well as other plants

I didn't have time to go through all the stalls, but the orchids were gorgeous, and this one pictured here is a kind that I've never seen before.

There were of course many rooster-related items, particularly stuffed toys, phone covers, cushions and trinkets.

And what's a Hong Kong fair without some politics, particularly in an election year?

The Democratic Party had a modified game called "fish prawn crab", a kind of gambling game, with caricatures of the four candidates -- Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, John Tsang Chun-wah, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, and Woo Kwok-hing. Even possible candidate Jasper Tsang Yok-sing was in the mix too.

Another stall manned by the League of Social Democrats sold cushions shaped like luncheon meat tins. It was a reference to former pro-Beijing lawmaker Wong Kwok-hing's condemnation of legislative filibusters, that he once said wasted enough taxpayer dollars to buy thousands of cans of luncheon meat for the poor.

We saw some young people roaming around with a basket of stickers and it turns out they had political satire. One of them was a take on Shanghai calendar girls of the 1920s, featuring two women, and the heads were of Regina Ip and John Tsang...

I intend to go back again to check all the stalls out, and maybe pick up some flowers too!