Nimble press officers spare minister's blushes at media briefing

A battle of signs erupted yesterday between government press officers and a protester who has been following the environment minister at every publicity event on the plastic-bag levy since Sunday.

The battle was staged outside the CR Vanguard supermarket in Shau Kei Wan when Secretary for the Environment Edward Yau Tang-wah was speaking to the media after inspecting the implementation of the levy.

Ho Man-kit, a Sai Kung district councillor from pressure group Momentum 107, who had protested in a tram parade on Monday, stood behind Mr Yau as he was facing a row of press cameras and held up a placard reading 'Yau Tang-wah is speaking lies' in Chinese, as Mr Ho had done on Monday.

Two experienced press officers quickly stepped in and blocked part of the placard with two mini plastic-bag levy stands, saving their boss from embarrassment by turning the placard's message into 'Yau Tang-wah is speaking'. The protester tried several times to move his placard, but the officers quickly adjusted their positions.

Mr Ho, dressed in a suit and equipped with a mini-loudspeaker on his waist belt, ambushed his target outside the supermarket before 8am.

'The plastic-bag levy is harmful to the environment. The levy is just a show and Edward Yau is the best actor,' he shouted. He also accused the government of keeping the public in the dark on the negative impact of the charge.