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Hong Kong politics
OpinionComment
Tony Kwok
Tony Kwok

Opinion | Acting as CEOs, Hong Kong’s district council heads can begin new chapter in public service

  • Under the district council revamp, district officers will see their role expanded from public liaison to executive duties
  • Assured of competent district councillors to work with, these officers must live up to public expectations of better service

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Chief Executive John Lee visits a booth promoting district council reform in Wan Chai on May 5. Photo: Handout
Tony Kwok
Earlier this month, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu took the time to visit a booth in Wan Chai set up to collect residents’ signatures in support of district council reform. In the presence of the media, Lee spoke at length to the Wan Chai district officer, emphasising the important role she would play, under the reform, as district council chairman.
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In an interview, Lee said that district officers are the most knowledgeable about their respective districts, and most suitable for the job. This is, I believe, a strong message from the chief executive: as district council chairmen, district officers are expected to take district management to new heights.

With district council reform, emphasis is rightly placed on ensuring the correct implementation of the Basic Law with regard to the role of district councils, following the principle of “patriots administering Hong Kong” and safeguarding national security. These principles would be readily accepted by the public, who had witnessed for themselves how the existing district councils had been hijacked by anti-China elements during the 2019-2020 insurrection and used as a platform for advocating “Hong Kong independence”, leaving the district councils in chaos and residents’ welfare disregarded.

We can also ignore the voices opposing the revamp of district councils from overseas, including those who are fugitives in connection with the insurrection. As Xia Baolong, director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, once warned, Hong Kong society must be on the alert for overseas subversive forces.

Meanwhile, the public may have high expectations that the revamped district councils will provide much better service. To my mind, the most critical aspect of the district council revamp is letting district officers chair the councils.

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In the past, the role of the district officer was principally public liaison: acting as the eyes and ears of the government, taking the public’s pulse on government policy and assisting in the administration of districts. These officers had limited executive powers, with district offices largely serving as public inquiry centres.

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