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Opinion | As Hong Kong prepares for Legco polls, a lesson from the lead-in-water scandal
- While efforts to ensure competition in the election are welcome, a truly improved system would give lawmakers the political room to do the sort of work that exposed excessive levels of lead in water at a public estate in 2015
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The Legislative Council election feels a little surreal and we’re more than halfway into the nomination period, which ends this Friday. Only 15 applicants filed papers on the first day – less than half the number usually seen in previous Legco elections – and there are more seats up for grabs.
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Beijing would reportedly like to see competition, and is adamant about not having walkovers. It’s just that the competition shouldn’t get too fierce – at least, not in the open.
But securing nominations is no walk in the park: former lawmaker Ronny Tong Ka-wah, now leader of Path of Democracy and a government adviser, has said securing nominations has been unexpectedly difficult.
Election Committee members have only one nomination to give and so the deliberation process and the political calculus involved are complex. Backing someone who may not, in the end, be able to secure enough nominations across the five sectors of the Election Committee would be a waste of their endorsement.
Worse, what if the aspiring candidate doesn’t get past the eligibility review committee? That would make nominators supporters of people who were deemed unfit to run – a blotch on their patriotic profile.
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Those who wish to be part of the election – whether by running or nominating someone to run – have to navigate treacherous political terrain.
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