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Barrister Ronny Tong of the Article 45 Concern Group said on Tuesday he would
seriously consider an invitation to join the Executive Council.
Tong, who was among 10 democrats invited to the National Day celebration in
Beijing last week, said that the inclusion of democrats in Exco could help
improve the way Hong Kong was governed.
Tong's comments follows reports that Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa was
considering inviting members of the group to join his cabinet.
"So far I have not been approached by Mr Tung. But if I am invited, I will
consider it as the inclusion of different voices into Exco will certainly help
improve governance. It is definitely a good thing if pan-democrats are
invited,'' Tong told MetroNews.
However, Tong agreed that if the reshuffle was only cosmetic, it would not help
Tung's governance.
"If Exco continues to rubber stamp policies already decided by the government,
taking on one or two new personalities would be meaningless,'' he said.
The head of the Central Policy Unit, Lau Siu-kai, earlier admitted that Tung had
discussed the possibility of inviting members of the Article 45 Concern Group
to join Exco.
However, he declined to give details.
"It will be up to Mr Tung to decide,'' he said.
The Article 45 Concern Group, which consists of four lawmakers-elect -
barristers Ronny Tong, Alan Leong, Audrey Eu and Margaret Ng - is considered to
be both moderate and rational in addition to enjoying strong popularity. It is
widely believed their participation in Exco could help improve the government's
relations with the opposition.
It was reported that Tung had already sounded out Leong in a private meeting on
Monday.
But Leong denied he had been approached.
Leong had earlier told MetroNews that he would reject any invite to join
the cabinet as it would not help resolve governance issues.
However, on Tuesday he was tight-lipped when asked whether he had changed his
mind.
"It is a hypothetical question. I have not arrived at the bridge so why think
about crossing it?'' he asked. "I don't see there is much an Exco member can
do, being the minority of the minority.''
Tung's administration was rocked last year by the resignations of his two top
aides, former security chief Regina Ip and finance chief Antony Leung, as well
as the sudden resignation of Liberal Party chief James Tien forcing a
government climbdown on the Article 23 legislation.
Tien was later replaced by party colleague Selina Chow and Tung pledged to
overhaul his cabinet after the Legislative Council elections in September.
But he warned last year a reshuffle should only take place if it enhanced the
executive-led governance as prescribed in the Basic Law.
Audrey Eu declined to comment on the possibility of being appointed as one of
Tung's trusted lieutenants, saying so far she had not been approached.
"It hasn't happened. I don't think it's appropriate for me to comment on
speculation. I don't think there is a need to consider it yet,'' she said.
Eu said that the system was flawed and that anyone who joined Exco would face
problems and difficulties.
"The government is not elected by universal suffrage and hasn't really got the
popular mandate. Add to this the fact that the majority of Legco is elected by
a small section of the electorate while a majority of the electorate has
resulted in a minority part of Legco, the whole system is lop-sided,'' she
said.
"In real life, you may not be able to do much because you are in the minority
... this makes it difficult. I think this is a flawed system. Anybody choosing
to join a flawed system at this stage is bound to run into problems.''
Eu also warned it would be difficult for any lawmaker to abide by the Exco
rules of collective responsibility and confidentiality.
Tong agreed, saying these two Exco rules could restrict a lawmaker's role in
fighting for the interests of the community in Legco.
But he said that should any member of the group join Tung's cabinet, it would
not affect the working relationship within the group.
"We are four independents and the Article 45 Concern Group is not a political
party. We don't even have a pact. I don't think Mr Tung needs our four votes as
he has already enough from the pro-government camp,'' he said.
Non-official Executive Council member and Liberal Party chairwoman Selina Chow
said she would welcome concern group members as it would bring in different
voices to Exco. But she warned that newcomers would have to abide by the rules.
"Both requirements are aimed at ensuring that discussions within the Exco are
frank and fearless,'' she said.
Democratic Party vice-chairman Albert Ho, meanwhile, voiced doubts.
"Even if a pro-democrat joins Exco, he or she would need to adhere to the
rules.These pre-requisites would surely set barriers to their work,'' he said.
cannix.yau@globalchina.com
michael.ng@globalchina.com
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