OpinionGesture politics gets Hong Kong nowhere
Philip Bowring calls on legislators to go beyond opposition to the government for its own sake and offer constructive proposals to solve Hong Kong's myriad problems
Politics in Hong Kong has become depressing just when a new administration needs all the support it can muster for doing what is right, and all the constructive opposition when it is not. Opposition gestures devoid of positive demands are tedious and bring representative government into disrepute.
The filibuster by "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung and others against the government's means-test proposal for old-age benefits was a classic self-centred and ultimately meaningless protest. It also showed how little the radicals seem to understand the reasons old-age poverty is far from universal. The other side of the coin of young couples being priced out of the home market is the 60-and-over group who bought property 30 to 40 years ago, and are now sitting on massive capital profits. The New Territories has a vast indigenous class raking in billions every year in rent from their multiple "family" homes.
The filibuster induced the government to resort to a piece of legislative trickery, withdrawing the request and attaching it to the forthcoming budget. This is likely to be the thin end of the wedge to force through all kinds of dubious expenditure on projects favoured by insider groups, and generally undermine the role of the Legislative Council and its finance committee in scrutinising spending. One wonders whether either party in this case considered the longer-term consequences.
Likewise, I suspect the public is tired of gesture politics such as calls for Leung Chun-ying to resign. It is futile, and there is no need to emphasise his failings. The public is well aware of the illegal structures issue - and may be bored of it by now, knowing that whatever the specifics, it is scarcely of the same dimension as Henry Tang Ying-yen's case.
Those who feel strongly about illegal structures should focus on the lawlessness of the New Territories and demand action against the Heung Yee Kuk and the forces of feudalism led by former executive councillor Lau Wong-fat.
Motions of no confidence also smack of gesture politics. While they might give an opportunity to show up Leung's lack of popularity, motions for improvements in specific government policies or performance would make more sense. Likewise, many motions seem more calculated to bring attention to the mover than make actionable proposals.
Politics is supposed to be the art of the possible, using such influence as a minority possesses to influence events positively. For instance, the proposal to expand the role of the Central Policy Unit is quite disturbing given the desire of its head, Shiu Sin-por, to focus on selling policies rather than devising ones to meet medium-to-long-term needs.