DAB nomination plan will open door to rival pan-democrats, says party leader

The leader of the city’s largest political party today defended an electoral proposal it floated for the chief executive election, saying he believes its blueprint would allow rival pan-democrats to be put forward as candidates for the race.

The plan, unveiled by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong yesterday, has attracted criticism from both the pan-democratic and pro-establishment camps.

Under the DAB proposal, a nominating committee with 1,200 to 1,600 members will be created. Hopefuls must get support from at least one-tenth of committee members in order to qualify for an internal ballot, so a maximum of 10 hopefuls can qualify. In the internal ballot, each committee member will have up to four votes. The top two to four candidates who win support from at least half of the nominating committee members will then go forward for the public poll.

Political scientists have warned against allowing committee members to have multiple votes, and requiring hopefuls to win more than 50 per cent support. It would mean a hopeful who has strong public backing and support from a minority of committee members would still have no chance of getting onto the ballot paper.

DAB chairman Tam Yiu-chung, explaining the blueprint further on a radio programme this morning, dismissed suggestions the plan would make the nominating committee prone to “manipulation” by the central government.

“If the composition of the committee is so broad, and consists of all sectors, is it so easy to control it?”