As a media lunch hosted by the newly inaugurated Economic Synergy group was coming to a close, one veteran journalist said he was struck by a feeling of d?j? vu when listening to the presentation by three former Liberal Party legislators about their new set-up.
The idea of a 'platform' for businesses and different sectors to find solutions to problems facing Hong Kong, he said, was reminiscent of the political debate in the 1980s.
Back then, talks on Hong Kong's future had begun, leading to a rise in enthusiasm for political participation in the colony.
Activists, professionals and business figures formed various civic and political groups. Some of these were the embryonic beginnings of major political parties, including the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party, that were born in the 1990s.
Two decades on, party politics is still in its infancy. But more people believe that this is the shape of things to come as Hong Kong inches towards universal suffrage.
The veteran journalist was not alone in wondering about the new group's endgame. Another asked: 'You said it's not a political party. It doesn't sound like a think-tank. Isn't it something between a political party and a think-tank?'
