Arrangements for the town hall meetings may have improved, but the community visits initiated by the new chief executive Leung Chun-ying seem destined to upset his supporters and detractors alike.
Both Peter Cheng and Joe Chan said yesterday they wanted a seat in the Tung Tau Community Hall in Wong Tai Sin where Leung was to hold a public consultation session with local residents. While the former, a university graduate, planned to demonstrate his anger towards the government's failure in providing affordable flats, the latter hoped to meet the city's new leader and show his support. Only Cheng managed to get in.
There were many, like Chan, who failed to get into the meeting yesterday and showed their frustration. 'I just want to show my support. I was here at 10am but I still can't get in,' said a man outside the hall who declined to be named.
The government said tickets were delivered at 12.15pm. But some of the elderly, who admitted to being 'encouraged' by pro-government parties to queue for a ticket, said they arrived at 7am. Leung eventually arrived at 1pm with a police escort, amid crowds of protesters asking him to step down.
The district councils modified the way the six town hall meetings were organised yesterday, after one held last week in Tuen Mun turned into a fiasco. But the limited number of seats, about 200, was just too few for too many.
The different expectations of those attending the meetings and those who protested outside also highlighted the need for the new government to address political and social issues.