Louis Shih ousted from Medical Council
Dermatologist Dr Louis Shih Tai-cho lost his seat on the Medical Council after being a member for 13 years.
Shih gained 1,010 votes in an election, but lost out to newcomer Dr Patrick Li Chung-ki, a public hospital doctor, who got 1,284 votes. The other two contenders, Dr Tse Hung-hing and Dr Cheung Chi-man, won re-election with 1,606 and 1,166 votes respectively.
Shih, a member since 1998, said he might have lost votes over what he termed his ambiguous stance on the recruitment of overseas doctors without a licensing examination - hotly opposed by many doctors.
'I was an overseas doctor myself years ago', said the private doctor, who practised in Canada after graduation before returning to Hong Kong. 'The result reflects that it may be a good time for me to leave after so many years.'
Shih, who joined the New People's Party led by legislator Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, said political sensitivities might also have been a factor.
Half the council's 28 members are ex officio representatives of universities and government departments. Of the 14 elected by doctors, three finished their three-year terms this year.
An attendance sheet seen by the South China Morning Post shows that Shih had the lowest attendance rate of the 14 elected members at monthly policy meetings, showing up for only five of nine meetings.
But his absences were not significant compared to those of the appointed members, one of whom attended only two meetings.
