HKU turmoil worsens

Eunice Lam

University of Hong Kong's governing council in a statement yesterday denied holding "personal grudges" against the institution's president, Zhang Xiang, saying it had held discussions with him for a long time over the appointment of interim vice presidents.

Zhang refuted the allegations made by the council point by point in his statement released late last night, adding he is "extremely sad" that "someone is disrupting" the university's strategic development.

The council, chaired by Priscilla Wong Pui-sze, said the vice presidents' appointments had been approved with "majority support."

It said Zhang, who denied having "prior knowledge of these appointments at all," had been informed.

The council also noted that it is the governing body that is responsible for appointing the senior management team, including the interim managerial staff under its laws.

It said advice on the appointments had been sought from its legal teams and the council had been told there were no legal issues, adding that the appointments were made in the interest of the university as a whole.

The council said the vice president and pro-vice-chancellor (global) post had been left vacant for five-and-a-half years, and the university only saw two interim vice presidents and pro-vice-chancellors (institutional advancement) in the past seven years.

"Some 'interim' vice presidents had been in office for five-and-a-half years and had taken three positions at one time, which had hindered the check-and-balance mechanism between [the university's] internal posts," it said.

The university, the council said, is entrusted with public funds and has to fulfill the highest standards of corporate governance at all times to assist the president in enhancing the effectiveness of governance.

The statement stressed there are "no personal grudges" between the council and Zhang, and it will resolve the management issues under internal procedures.

The council also said the university's Human Resource Policy Committee had suggested there was an urgent need to appoint interim vice presidents, and the appointment issue had been listed in the agenda for the May 28 meeting issued on May 21.

It added that Zhang had brought legal documents of different views regarding the issue during the May 28 meeting, which "showed that he was aware" of the appointment of interim vice presidents.

Hyperlinks to the list of HKU senior management expired and their contact details were removed from several HKU websites as of last night, including the HKU's official site and the president's office website.

In a statement late last night, Zhang listed a total of 10 points in refuting the council's statement, and said both Wong and the council had never consulted him on any of the candidates proposed.

The council did not follow the university's usual practice and violated HKU regulations by directly appointing the interim vice presidents without his permission, according to Zhang's statement, adding he was "extremely disappointed that the council's highly confidential documents had been leaked again.

"I would like to point out that the public leak of confidential letters within the council is exactly the same as the malicious 'whistleblower' slanderous anonymous letter against me last year," he said.

"At a critical moment in Hong Kong's development, some individuals have ignored Hong Kong's strategic opportunities for development and talent, and have continued to maliciously create incidents and disrupt the University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong."

However, former lawmaker Abraham Shek Lai-him, a council member for over a decade now, said he "begged to differ" and asked the council to hold a meeting so that Zhang could address what Shek called "serious allegations" made in the statement.

He told The Standard he received an e-mail at 4pm yesterday asking him to vote on whether he agreed with the statement, which would be published if 50 percent of council members agreed with it.

Shek, in a direct response to the e-mail, said he opposed the statement on the grounds that it violated procedural justice and requested an urgent meeting be held.

The statement got the assent of a majority of the council's members, but Shek said it should not be issued under the auspices of the governing council anyway.

"No matter what [Zhang] has done wrong, he deserves an opportunity to explain to the council," Shek said, adding he hopes the council can handle the issue in accordance with established procedures.

The latest twist in a dispute that has roiled the management of one of Hong Kong's leading universities for quite a while now came after sources said Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu decided to step in to resolve the internal conflict by meeting Zhang and Wong, according to pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao.

It is understood that Lee suggested a coordination group be set up in the hope of finding a middleman to handle the controversy and enhance communications between the opposing sides.

An insider said Lee, who also serves as HKU chancellor, met Wong and Zhang more than once separately recently, and that what had been leaked out "does not reflect the full picture."

The meetings have been a part of government efforts to put an end to the management infighting, the source added.

Lee said before the Executive Council last Tuesday that he "had taken action to learn more about what is happening, and had tasked the Education Bureau as well."

Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin said on Saturday that it was normal for different parties to hold different opinions in the university, and that the bureau hoped the issue could be handled "frankly and sincerely."

Choi added: "We understand that the public is very concerned, and we would like to cherish the hard-earned achievements of the university and enhance communication on all fronts."

Eight former council members and alumni, including former education secretary Fanny Law Fan Chiu-fun, signed a petition on Thursday asking the chief executive to step in.

They said they had lost confidence in Wong's management ability. Wong's term is expiring at year-end.

The council abruptly approved the interim appointments of six vice presidents on May 28 in a worsening of the tensions between Zhang and Wong that first came to light in October when Zhang faced a series of mismanagement allegations.

Zhang had been cleared of his misconduct accusations in mid-April following a six-month-long probe by a five-member panel convened by Wong.

eunice.lam@singtaonewscorp.com