cab chat
Lam Kum-lung, 38, says he is concerned that the lopsided outcome of Sunday's district council elections will not be totally beneficial to the local political scene. Ride from North Point to Sai Kung. Cost $197.8.
Before Sunday's elections, many people were saying it was time to put the right people in the right places for the sake of Hong Kong's future. There were a lot of expectations that the pro-government elements would be flushed out at the district level to make way for the democratic faction. I think a lot of people were using this election as an opportunity to vote against the administration.
If you look at some of the results, many winning candidates are virtual newcomers in politics and they still managed to beat those who have years of experience. What we are witnessing is a new political era that has undergone a gradual evolution as a result of the July 1 movement.
We can't deny the fact that the people of Hong Kong have become a lot more motivated when it comes to politics and matters that concern their community. It is a good thing, but we also need to take politics very seriously and not use it solely as a weapon to get even with the administration.
Going back to the quality of these newcomers, we have to question whether being pro-democracy is good enough to run the community and represent the people. I would look at the candidates' background, apart from screening their political affiliation.
Anybody could say they are pro-democracy to win support - but experience is something more substantial.
If we select councillors simply because they are not pro-government, it is definitely the wrong approach. And, I am afraid, a lot of people might have voted with this wrong intention on Sunday. Some candidates might have taken advantage of the public's anti-government sentiment to gain votes. They might have used the election as a platform to purge pro-government elements and, at the same time, advance their political careers.
I think that was totally inappropriate. They knew it would draw a lot of reaction from the public and would naturally attract voters. They were cashing in on the success of the July 1 mass demonstration to speed up democratic development. These people were opportunists, to say the least. But, unfortunately, many voters fell for this tactic because they needed a channel to vent their discontent and desperately needed a feel-good element in their lives.
So when some candidates came forward with new promises, they gladly accepted them without hesitation.
It is certainly not healthy for the long-term political development of Hong Kong if people are voting with their hearts only, and not with their heads. There should be a sensible balance between both. It will take a while before the feelings stirred up by the July 1 mass protest will settle.
Nobody wants their community representative to speak for the government instead of reflecting their views. But when we put someone people to represent us, we also expect them to know their job. It is similar to hiring employees - we can't hire them only because they are nice and pleasant, we also need to look at their qualifications. There are many nice people out there, does that mean we have to put them all in office?
When it comes to politics, I am still very sceptical. Maybe because there are still not enough good people around to run our community. Our politicians are relatively inexperienced and our government is hopelessly inefficient. So where do we go from here? I think when some of the people calm down and become more down to earth in regard to community leadership, we might begin to see some more sensible choices.
Therefore, I hope that when it comes to next year's Legislative Council election, perhaps people will be able to see things more clearly and vote with both their hearts and minds.
