Civic Party candidates refuse to sign new form despite head of electoral watchdog saying rule change is legal
Earlier meeting with Electoral Affairs Commission chairman Justice Barnabas Fung Wah left pan-democrats confused and dissatisfied
Civic Party candidates will not sign the additional form required by a controversial rule change for the Legislative Council polls in September, party leader Alan Leong Kah-kit has declared.
Instead, Sumly Chan Yuen-sum, the party’s candidate for the so-called “super seat”, will issue a letter to returning officers on Wednesday as he signs up for the polls, urging them to confirm his candidacy as soon as possible – even without the form in question.
The Electoral Affairs Commission introduced an abrupt measure last week requiring candidates to sign an extra form declaring the city an inalienable part of China, on top of making the standard declaration to uphold the Basic Law.
“The election period is short, and we need to make good use of the time for campaigning,” Leong told Commercial Radio on Wednesday morning.
“We will track the returning officers every day to see if our candidates are qualified [without signing the additional form].”