Speculation is mounting that Vice-President Xi Jinping will today drop hints about who Beijing backs for chief executive when he meets the city's deputies to the nation's top political advisory body.
Lew Mon-hung, a local delegate to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said he believed Xi - Beijing's top official on Hong Kong affairs - may indicate a preference for either Henry Tang Ying-yen or Leung Chun-ying. 'I have heard from various sources since I arrived in Beijing ... that the central government will declare an inclination, and then most Election Committee electors would follow that,' said Lew, who backs Leung.
However, others in the pro-establishment camp who are in the capital for the CPPCC and National People's Congress meetings - among them Federation of Trade Unions president Cheng Yiu-tong and Legislative Council president Tsang Yok-sing - said they had had no indications from the central government.
Neither Tang nor Leung would comment on the speculation. The third candidate, pan-democrat Albert Ho Chun-yan, is a rank outsider.
Meanwhile, sources in Tang's camp said Hong Kong's first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa, had canvassed votes for Leung.
'Tung has approached different deputies to canvass for votes for Leung,' a person close to Tang said in Beijing. NPC and CPPCC deputies are ex-officio members of the 1,200- strong Election Committee which will choose the city's next leader three weeks today. Tung, a vice-chairman of the CPPCC, has not publicly commented on the race to succeed Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, although he is expected to support Leung.