CY Leung mocks “puzzling” Pan-dems; MPFA boss eyes lower charges; City Forum on anti-police song. Photo Credit: Chris Lusher
CY Leung: No universal suffrage for LegCo before 2024 if reform is vetoed.
– CY Leung reiterated that “the earliest time to have universal suffrage for LegCo will be 2024, nine years from now” if the proposals are voted down
– Leung said it was “puzzling” that the Pan-dems who opposed the reform “have not offered any alternative that complies with the Basic Law”
– Meanwhile, Financial Secretary John Tsang urged (in Chinese) Pan-dem lawmakers to “agree to disagree” and choose the decision that is acceptable to most people as vetoing the proposals would only lead to a lose-lose situation
Rimsky Yuen and Bernard Chan promote reform in Aberdeen.
– Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen told reporters that he is happy to meet people with different political views while urging them to be rational and pragmatic during a promotion drive in Aberdeen
– Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Lau Kong-wah and Exco member Bernard Chan were also promoting the reform package in a Chinese restaurant in Aberdeen, where Chan was confronted by a woman asking over Beijing’s lack of faith in Hong Kong people
MPFA boss says charges can be lower.
– Chairman of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA) Management Board David Wong Yau-kar said (in Chinese) defended the scheme by stating that the average charges have been reduced from 2.1% to 1.63% since 2007 and can be lower while the average annual return is 4.3%
– Wong meanwhile said that abandoning the hedging mechanism of the MPF, as proposed by his predecessor Anna Wu, would require thorough negotiations between labour and management.
Politics (general)
– Pan-dem lawmakers drove on their own vehicles yesterday from Tai Kok Tsui to Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po and Tsuen Wan to set out a campaign against the reform package
– Alan Leong slammed (in Chinese) Carrie Lam for fooling the Pan-dems regarding her earlier call that Pan-dem lawmakers could propose a package that complies with Beijing’s 8.31 decision
Anti-police song incident sparks debate at City Forum.
– President of the Lingnan University Student Union Lau Chun-lam argued (video in Cantonese) at yesterday’s City Forum that critics over the recent song played at a university concert that included swear words against the police should look beyond the single event and think about why it existed in the first place
– Junius Ho, spokesman of the pro-establishment New Territories Concern Group and former Law Society chairman, said playing the song in public could be a violation of the Public Order Ordinance as the lyrics are intimidating and insulting
