Update | Former leader Tung Chee-hwa plans 'think tank' for Hong Kong development
Former chief executive wants to set up body on city's future 'after seeing how it's done in States'
Former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa was inspired to set up a think tank to "promote the long-term development of Hong Kong" by the active role of such bodies in US politics.
So says a source familiar with the matter, who said Tung, as chairman of the China-United States Exchange Foundation, had travelled extensively in America in recent years, and was impressed by think tanks there.
"He feels the need to have more think tanks in Hong Kong to conduct policy research in a more comprehensive and independent way," the source said.
Tung announced plans to set up a think tank on Friday following his unexpected return to the media spotlight earlier this month, when he called a press conference to voice his support for the national legislature's framework for political reform.
After keeping a low profile since stepping down as chief executive in 2005, he is now also set to lead a contingent of at least 40 of the city's business elite to meet President Xi Jinping in Beijing tomorrow.
Friday's announcement was made by a spokesman for the 77-year-old who became the city's first post-handover leader in 1997. "Tung … is now considering setting up a think tank about promoting the long-term development of Hong Kong," the spokesman said, adding that further details would be announced when available.
There was speculation yesterday that the move was intended to help the governance of the present chief executive, Leung Chun-ying, and to push forward a long-term strategy to maintain the city's competitive edge.
Professor Lau Siu-kai, who served as Tung's top adviser as part of the government's Central Policy Unit think tank, said the new body might target imminent governance challenges as well as explore how Hong Kong's economy can sustain its competitiveness.
Lau, who is now a vice-chairman of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies think tank, believed Tung would not only recruit local research talent, but also overseas and mainland experts.
Former financial secretary Antony Leung Kam-chung, who served in Tung's cabinet from 2002 to 2003, said he would not decline the chance to join the think tank if an invitation came.
"Mr Tung is a veteran leader as well as my senior … how could I say no?" asked Leung, who resigned in July 2003 over the "Lexusgate" affair - when he bought a Lexus car shortly before he raised the first-registration tax on newly purchased vehicles.
He declined to speculate on whether the new think tank aimed to facilitate the debate on political reform or to ease the plunging popularity of the present chief executive.
Beijing is trying to overcome opposition from the city's pan-democrats to its reform proposal, under which no more than three candidates would be allowed to stand in the first one-man, one-vote election for chief executive in 2017. Each candidate would need support from more than half of the members of a 1,200-strong nominating committee.
Moses Cheng Mo-chi, a solicitor who has held a range of public-sector posts, said he had kept in touch with Tung but declined to say whether he had been invited to join the new think tank.
Tung - whose father founded what was to become one of the world's largest shipping fleets - now serves as a vice-chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. He quit the top job in 2005 on health grounds. Already under pressure, his popularity plunged when his government tried to introduce anti-sedition laws under Article 23 of the Basic Law in 2003.
Andrew Fung Ho-keung, director of the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute, said the city's think tanks lacked financial and human resources, while their research results often failed to have any impact because the complicated political environment hindered policy implementation.
Ma Ngok, a political scientist, said Tung's think tank might be more symbolic by nature, consolidating the support of big business behind Leung's team. "It's hard to believe the genuine intention of the think tank is to pursue policy research because it would require at least a year or two to produce any meaningful research results," Ma said.
Prominent think tanks
Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre (chairman Donald Li Kwok-tung)
Civic Exchange (chief executive Yip Yan-yan)
One Country Two Systems Research Institute (chairman Ronnie Chan Chichung)
Policy Research Institute (director Andrew Fung Ho-keung)
Business and Professionals Federation of Hong Kong (chairman David Wong Yau-kar)