King Arthur hits back: Li says he accepted University of Hong Kong post ‘to avert anarchy and mob rule’
Controversial professor appointed as head of HKU governing body hits back at critics in TV interview
Professor Arthur Li Kwok-cheung says he has decided to accept his controversial appointment as head of the University of Hong Kong’s governing body after two months’ consideration because he does not want to see “anarchy” and “mob rule” in Hong Kong.
In a combative mood, the executive councillor also accused some academics in the university of hiding “behind [the] slogan of academic freedom in order not to do their work”.
He promised he would “put the strategic direction of the university on its right track” in six months.
READ MORE: University challenge: Arthur Li and his detractors must restore confidence in Hong Kong’s most prestigious tertiary institution
Li was made chairman of the university council on January 1 for a three-year term, despite opposition from the pan-democrats, university staff and students, who claimed his appointment was a government bid to tighten the control over the university.
Benny Tai Yiu-ting of the university’s law faculty is a co-founder of the 2014 Occupy Central protests, and student leaders from the university were prominent in the movement.
Meanwhile, the head of the student union is seeking a judicial review to challenge the university’s decision not to appoint a liberal law scholar Professor Johannes Chan Man-mun as a pro-vice-chancellor.