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Party roused by pan-democrats' plan
Hong Kong's largest government-friendly political party said yesterday it was ready to take on the pan-democrats if they went ahead with a plan to resign from the legislature and use the ensuing by-elections as a referendum on universal suffrage.
The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong's stance follows concerns by some politicians that the by-elections could be boycotted by voters, defeating the referendum plan.
"Perhaps the pan-democrats want to stir up antagonism in society by resigning and running in by-elections," DAB chairman Tam Yiu-chung said. "No matter what, the DAB is always ready to take them on at any time in any elections."
Mr Tam, whose party has 13 legislators, including those with dual membership in the Federation of Trade Unions, said the DAB's established principles were to fight all elections and by-elections once seats became vacant. "We have the manpower, we have the resources and also the candidates to win," he said.
Ip Kwok-him, convenor of the party's caucus, said the DAB would treat any such contests solely as elections rather than referendums to gauge public support on the forthcoming constitutional reform proposal to be tabled by the government.
"I really do hope the democrats will voluntarily give up their seats, because I don't believe they will recapture all seats in by-elections. Do you think the public are stupid?" Mr Ip said. "Will they vote for someone who wastes taxpayers' money by unnecessarily causing by-elections?"
The League of Social Democrats has proposed that pan-democrats resign in five geographical constituencies after the government finalises its constitutional reform proposal next year. The Democratic Party and Civic Party have agreed to consider the proposal, as the by-elections could be seen as referendums on whether the public would support the government's reform proposals.
But independent legislator Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, who lost to former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang in a 2007 by-election before winning her current seat in the Legco election last year, said the referendum plan could be derailed if government allies snubbed the by-elections.
"If nobody other than the pan-democrats shows any interest in contesting the by-elections, how can it be called a referendum if there is non-participation?" Mrs Ip said.
Liberal Party chairwoman Miriam Lau Kin-yee said her party had yet to consider whether to run, but said any unwarranted by-election would cost a lot of taxpayers' money.
Thomas Yu Kwun-wai, a member of the Civic Party executive committee, said Beijing loyalists could refuse to take part and allow the pan-democrats to be returned unelected or through competition with unknown figures, try to win seats in one-on-one contests, or introduce "fake democrats" to dilute the vote for mainstream pan-democrats to give their own candidates a victory.
"If we decide to go ahead, we will explain to the public the rationale behind this plan," Mr Yu said. When the constitutional development consultation was revealed - leaving the public dissatisfied but with no channel to express it - they would not think it a waste of money, but a chance to speak out on the matter, he said. | 
麥角二乙醯胺 2009-08-06 10:26
投機主義，表露無遺
「五區總辭」計劃倘若成功，社民連則可挾民意自重，做其人民英雄、民主大佬，脅迫中國和香港政府，實施有利她們的選擇模式，若事情失敗則可推說香港市民不支持香港發展民主云云，而且社民連只會派出一名代表(極有可能是黃毓民本人)，敗選風險有限加上選舉經費來源意向市民募集，根本不費自己一分一毫，如此一石多鳥的投機計劃，若然得逞，恐怕是香港之禍。