Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa (董建華) huddled behind closed doors yesterday with three cabinet members -- including an official rumored to be his successor -- amid intense speculation that the unpopular politician would soon quit with two years left in his term.
The officials refused to talk to the media, and the weeklong political drama over Tung's future showed few clear signs of ending.
The resignation rumors have been partly fueled by Tung, who has repeatedly declined to assure the public he's staying. He has only said he would address the issue at the "appropriate time."
PHOTO: AP
Many of Tung's critics have said that the ongoing political uncertainty and lack of transparency could damage Hong Kong.
Those meeting with Tung yesterday included those who could be reshuffled if Tung steps down: Chief Secretary for Administration Donald Tsang (曾蔭權), Financial Secretary Henry Tang (唐英年) and Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology John Tsang (曾俊華).
Donald Tsang's spokesman Donald Chen confirmed the official met with Tung but declined to give details.
The spokeswoman for the commerce secretary, Diana To, said she didn't know what was discussed at the meeting but called it an "ordinary" gathering.
Spokesmen for Tung and Tang declined to confirm the meeting.
Tung's movements have been scrutinized by the local media since he returned from Beijing on Sunday after meeting with his bosses -- Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) and Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶). The media described the trip as a farewell tour for Tung.
If Tung quits, Donald Tsang -- the No. 2 ranking official -- will replace him until a new leader, or chief executive, is elected by an 800-member election committee. Hong Kong voters can't directly elect their leader.
Tung also met with Donald Tsang on Sunday after his return, but government spokesman Victor Cheung said Tsang briefed Tung on happenings in Hong Kong when Tsang served as acting leader during his absence.
Speculation of Tung's departure intensified more than a week ago when the leader was named to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a top advisory body to the China's legislature. He reportedly will be appointed one of the group's vice chairmen -- a title usually given to retired leaders.
Tung has had a troubled tenure since becoming leader of this former British colony when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Many view him as incompetent, alleging his government didn't tackle Hong Kong's economic woes and the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003. Tung is also seen as China's local puppet in not allowing greater democracy.
In the lowest point of his rule, half a million upset at an anti-subversion bill viewed as draconian marched in protest on July 1, 2003. The bill was later shelved.
SPEAKING OUT: After Siranudh Scott’s allegations surfaced, celebrities and public figures took to social media to share their own experiences of sexual misconduct and abuse A high-profile alleged sexual abuse case within a wealthy Thai beer brewing family has prompted a wave of painful accounts from survivors of unconnected abuse in the conservative nation. Siranudh Scott, a member of the billionaire Thai family that founded the ubiquitous Singha beer brand, posted an emotional video this month accusing his elder brother Sunit of repeatedly abusing him when he was a teenager. Sunit, who is in his 30s, later denied the allegations in a video posted online, but Singha parent Boonrawd dismissed him from his executive role with the company on Tuesday last week. “I felt I needed to speak
SEEKING ORDER: Rodrigo Paz said that ‘anyone who wants to destroy the nation will have to deal with this president and the full force of the constitution’ Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz on Wednesday said that the nation was at a “breaking point” after nearly a month of protests that have caused shortages of food, fuel and medicine. Paz, who took office six months ago amid the worst economic crisis there in four decades, is battling a groundswell of fury over his policies. The political capital, La Paz, has been besieged by low-income workers and members of the indigenous majority calling for his resignation. “The country needs order and is reaching breaking point,” the 58-year-old said at a public event in La Paz, renewing his appeal for dialogue. On Tuesday, the Bolivian
COMMUNITY CONFLICT: Concerns about disease spread from corpses has run up against friends and families’ desire to bury their dead as infection spreads in the area Angry residents of a town at the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) attacked and burned a tent that was part of a health center where people are being treated for the virus, the staff there said Saturday. It was the second such attack in the region in a week. No one was hurt in the attack, according to reports but as patients ran out to escape the fire, 18 people with suspected Ebola infections fled the facility and are unaccounted for, a hospital director said. Angry residents arrived at the clinic in the
Forecasters in Europe yesterday warned of exceptional heat as record temperatures driven by a “heat dome” push temperatures well above seasonal norms across the continent. The surge follows a record-breaking Monday, with France logging its hottest day in the month of May on record, its weather agency said, and the UK also posting unprecedented highs. A so-called “heat dome” of warm air from northern Africa trapped under a high-pressure system over western Europe is behind the high temperatures not usually seen until high summer. Restrictions on outdoor work were imposed in parts of Italy, beaches in southwest France filled earlier than usual and
RSS