University president launches lecture series, to praise from famous students

Lingnan University president Edward Chen Kwan-yiu received an absolution of sorts from one of his former students yesterday as he launched a lecture series at the University of Hong Kong.

Just because three of his former students were in charge of the economy in some of its darkest hours did not mean he was to blame, former financial secretary Antony Leung Kam-chung reassured the professor.

'The economy recovered once I left. The problem didn't lie with my teacher or with the other two,' a self-deprecating Mr Leung said, referring to Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Frederick Ma Si-hang and Secretary for Economic Development and Labour Stephen Ip Shu-kwan.

The former finance chief and Mr Ma were among former students who showed up to pay their respects to Professor Chen as he delivered the inaugural lecture in the Edward K.Y. Chen Distinguished Lecture Series, speaking on economic development theories.

Mr Leung further absolved his teacher of blame for his own performance when he apologised for skipping lectures.

But the professor, who retires as head of Lingnan at the end of August, wasn't letting his former acolytes take all the rap. He said part of the problem might have been that he spent his time teaching his students how to deal with inflation when the prevailing problem of the day was deflation.