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Opinion | Hong Kong electoral reform is happening at breakneck speed as ‘Grandpa’ runs out of patience
- Beijing has redrawn the lines for power plays in Hong Kong by giving the Election Committee a major role in choosing lawmakers
- It also appears to be diminishing the role of the Heung Yee Kuk, which has become an obstacle to solving Hong Kong’s housing problem
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Beijing has embraced its new role in Hong Kong, rolling up its sleeves, getting its hands dirty, wading knee-deep into the political malaise. And things are getting done at lightning speed: in three days, Beijing held 66 consultation sessions in Hong Kong on the overhaul of the city’s electoral system.
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Speaking to the press at the end of the sessions last week, Zhang Xiaoming, executive deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, indicated that a larger proportion of lawmakers would be selected by the Election Committee than elected from geographical and functional constituencies.
Previously, the Election Committee had only been tasked with electing the chief executive. Now, in addition to its new role as the gatekeeper determining who will qualify as “patriots governing Hong Kong”, it will be selecting, and in effect creating, a new political powerhouse in the Legislative Council.
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Just like that, the lines for power plays in the legislature have been redrawn; just like that, Beijing has set Hong Kong on a brand new path.
Change will be coming at a breathtaking pace too, for Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has already vowed to fast track the local legislation required to deliver the city’s new electoral system, details of which will be endorsed and handed down by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee by the end of this month at the earliest.
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