Big-party candidates dominate field

More than half of district council candidates are coming from large pro-establishment parties after no pro-democracy aspirant managed to secure the adequate number of nominations.

The revamped district council elections on December 10 allows at most 362 candidates to run in direct elections.

But by yesterday's 5pm deadline, only 172 candidates had submitted their nominations.

They will contest 88 seats in 18 districts, which means two candidates will be fighting for a seat.

Among the 44 geographical constituencies, competition in Yau Tsim Mong South and Tai Po North appears to be the most intense, each having six candidates for two seats in each constituency.

The number of candidates in other constituencies ranges from three to five, which means there will be no shoo-ins. Tai Po North will see four pro-establishment parties fielding a candidate in the same constituency.

Apart from independents Lok Siu-luen and Yip Wai-yi, the race for the two Tai Po North seats will be contested by pro-Beijing giants Wu Cheuk-him, Ng Wei-hang, New People's Party's Lau Man-kit and the young Bauhinia Party's Ng Chun-fai.

The four major pro-establishment parties will send candidates to run for Eastern's Tai Pak constituency and Southern's Southeast and Northwest constituencies.

Candidates from the dominant Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong and the Federation of Trade Unions will have it easier, considering some of their members are on the district committees.

Smaller parties within the pro-establishment camp were able to field candidates, including two from the Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions and four from New Prospect for Hong Kong, consisting mainly of mainland Chinese living in the city.

It was a different story for the pro-democracy parties. The Centrist party Third Side said none of its members will be standing in the polls as they could not secure enough nominations from the three district committees.

Third Side chairman Tik Chi-yuen said: "We wrote letters, sent e-mails, made 30 to 40 phone calls to members of the three district committees. We also had friends act as 'middlemen' to help us gain nominations or introduce us to the members."

He added that many members of the district committees are "taking a wait-and-see attitude."

The Democratic Party also said none of its members will run.

Chairman Lo Kin-hei said some of the "six members that we had intended to field were able to obtain nominations. But they were not enough to throw their hat into the ring."

Following the electoral reforms, candidates will have to obtain nine nominations from three committees within the district, which are all under the Home Affairs Department and filled with pro-government politicians.

michael.shum@singtaonewscorp.com