[The Epoch Times, April 6, 2022](Reported by Epoch Times reporter Lin Yishan in Hong Kong) Only 1,488 people can voteHong Kong Chief Executive ElectionIt will take place on May 8, and the two-week nomination period also begins on April 3.Chief Executive of Hong KongCarrie LamOn the 4th, she announced that she would not be running for re-election, saying that her family was her top priority. “They think I have enough time to go home! (They think it’s time for me to go home!)” Chief Secretary for AdministrationLi JiachaoNo news has been released yet, and Carrie Lam also said that she has not received a letter of resignation.
April 3,Carrie LamWhen attending a press conference on the epidemic, when asked if she would run for election, she responded: “I will announce my personal intentions at the appropriate time, but this is not the right time, please wait a little longer.”
On April 4, Carrie Lam held a press conference and officially announced that she would not run for the next chief executive, stating that her term of office expires on June 30, and her 42-year public career will end. She thanked the Central Committee of the Mainland, the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government, the National Security Office, the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Communist Party of China in Hong Kong, the Chinese military in Hong Kong, the heads of various departments, all civil servants, unofficial members of the Executive Council, the Legislative Council, the judiciary, The Chief Executive’s Office, Government Office and her family, but she did not express her gratitude to “Hong Kong people”.
Carrie Lam revealed that he had expressed to Beijing that he would not seek re-election during the two sessions of the Communist Party of China in March last year. She said that the only consideration is family, “Family is the most important part of my life, family is my top priority, and she thinks I have enough time to return to the house! (They think it’s time for me to go home!)” She pointed out Beijing understands and respects her decision, but other communications with Beijing cannot be shared publicly. She said that in the next three months, she will continue to lead the governance team to do a good job in four areas, namely, the election of the chief executive, the stabilization and control of the fifth wave of the epidemic, the 25th anniversary of the handover of sovereignty, and the handover of the government.
aboutLi JiachaoA possible candidate for chief executive, Lam refused to comment on any candidate, and pointed out that until the moment of the press conference, no official resignation letter had been received.
Zhong Jianhua: Beijing may be worried that Carrie Lam’s memoirs will be arranged to live in the mainland
Zhong Jianhua, deputy chief executive of the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, analyzed in the Epoch Times program “True Words” on the 4th that after Lam’s departure, it is believed that Beijing may arrange for her to live in the mainland.
Zhong Jianhua believes that Carrie Lam’s past remarks and actions expressed the intention to please Beijing. When asked by the media many times whether she would run for re-election, she avoided it by “concentrating on fighting the epidemic”, believing that she was intending to win re-election. He said: “With the current situation of Carrie Lam, if she is not the chief executive, it will be difficult for her to put herself (position).”
Regarding Carrie Lam’s statement that he had expressed to the Central Committee that he would not stay in office last year, Zhong Jianhua said that he personally did not believe this statement, and no one could confirm this.
Zhong Jianhua continued to point out that Carrie Lam had considered retiring in the UK, but now that there are many Hong Kong people in the UK, she may not have a good life in the UK. He also speculated that the CCP may be worried that Carrie Lam will write a memoir when he goes abroad to expose the inside story of Hong Kong in the past few years.
Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor took office as the fifth Chief Executive of Hong Kong on July 1, 2017. The most controversial part of her tenure was the revision of the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, which triggered a six-month anti-extradition movement. Up to 2 million citizens participated in the demonstration and protest. Afterwards, the police were let loose to carry out a severe crackdown, which resulted in almost all pan-democratic legislators and many district councillors behind bars, and more than 10,000 Hong Kong citizens were arrested, further cracking down on freedom and the rule of law. The news media and dissident voices have been severely suppressed. During her tenure, she also passed the National Security Law, which surpassed Hong Kong’s original judicial system, further CCPization of the independent Hong Kong judicial system.
Many media said that Li Jiachao will run for election
“Sing Tao Daily” and “Hong Kong 01” reported on April 3 that the Chief Secretary for Administration, Li Jiachao, will run for the chief executive, and Wireless News also reported on the 4th that there was “authoritative information” that Li Jiachao would resign to run for election.
On the morning of the 4th, a large number of media were waiting outside Li Jiachao’s apartment at Kingsbury Road, Ho Mantin. At about 7:30, Li Jiachao left in his car. He did not respond to whether he wanted to run for chief executive, but only waved to reporters from the window. After the car arrived at the government headquarters, Li Jiachao did not respond.
“Ming Pao” published an interview with former National People’s Congress Standing Committee member Fan Xu Litai on the 4th. She expressed her hope that Li Jiachao would run for election, and she felt that he was “one of the candidates who can be considered for the election of chief executive.” When asked if Li Jiachao lacks experience in economics or other policy areas, Fan Xulitai said, “It’s hard to say, it depends on the opponent.” Regarding Chen Maobo, she said that “you can comment on your name” (you can comment when you sign up), and she also “welcomes anyone who is interested in serving Hong Kong to consider running for the chief executive.”
In addition, it is rumored that Leung Chun-ying, the former chief executive and vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, who is interested in re-election as chief executive, will be appointed as the general convener of the electoral committee. Some media have sent inquiries to him through text messages, but he has not responded.
The nomination period for the chief executive election will end on April 16. So far, only “Blue Camp KOL” Xian Guolin, “former DAB member” Hu Shiquan, security guard Lai Hongmei, and the convener of the “Cherish Group”, an established organization Li Bier, Li Zhijia and Xiao Deliang of unknown backgrounds announced their candidacy.
According to the revised chief executive election system, the Election Committee has a total of 1,500 members, but since some members are members of both sectors at the same time, there are actually only 1,488 Election Committee members this year. Each candidate for the chief executive election must obtain no less than 188 nominations for members of the Election Committee, with no less than 15 nominations from each of the five sectors.
Responsible editor: Lian Shuhua#