Chen to retire after 11 years as Legco secretariat chief

The Legislative Council will see a new secretariat chief next year as the current secretary general of the secretariat Kenneth Chen Wei-on said he will retire in August next year after serving 11 years in the post.

The Legco will start both open recruitment and internal selection for the post through human resources companies. The process is expected to last 10 to 12 months, Legco president Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said.

As the head of the Legco secretariat, the secretary general oversees the work of more than 600 employees, providing administering support for the legislature as well as managing Legco facilities for lawmakers and the public, Leung said.

"The secretary general must be dedicated, forceful and familiar with the Legco operation, as well as possess professional skills and leadership. The person should also have rich public administering experience," he said.

There will be no restriction on nationality for Chen's successor, Leung added.

Leung thanked Chen for his work after he joined the Legco secretariat in 2012, saying Chen has been dedicated to serving the legislature.

He added that the Legco faced unprecedented challenges during the sixth term from 2016 to 2021 - during which the social unrest took place - but Chen stuck to his post and carried out his duty.

Chen also pushed for the modernization and transparency of the Legco during his term, Leung said.

Chen thanked Leung and his colleagues for their support during his 11 years of work.

"The Legco has encountered a lot of challenge and many of them were unprecedented," Chen said. "I'm grateful to the whole secretariat team for their teamwork and support.

"In the coming year, my team and I will stick to our posts as we still have a lot of work to do, including expanding the Legco complex and further promoting the use of technology."

Chen encountered controversial issues during the sixth term of the legislature, including the disqualification of six lawmakers - Sixtus Leung Chung-hang, Yau Wai-ching, Leung Kwok-hung, Nathan Law Kwun-chung, Edward Yiu Chung-yim and Lau Siu-lai - in 2016 after Chen declared some of their oaths invalid.

In 2019, Chen was under criticism by pro-democracy lawmakers for issuing a circular asking lawmakers to vote in writing whether they supported a move to replace Democrat James To Kun-sun with Abraham Shek Lai-him as the host of the bill committee on the extradition laws.

In response, Chen stressed that the secretariat stayed neutral and its actions were based on the rules, slamming pro-democracy lawmakers for "bullying" the secretariat.