Legco hopeful aims to bridge Hong Kong’s political divide

Holden Chow Ho-ding believes he can act as a bridge between the pro-establishment and pan-democracy camps if he wins a seat in the September Legislative Council elections, thanks to his “easy” temperament.

Indeed, he said it was very same trait that enabled him to rise to the post of vice-chairman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) in just 10 years.

“Putting aside the differences in political ideologies, there are many livelihood issues on which the two sides can co-operate,” Chow said, citing MTR fare rises and the aborted copyright bill.

“If I could offer a second opinion to my party or both camps and make things work out, that would do a lot of good to forging constructive relations.”

Born in 1979, Chow studied in Britain after finishing Form Five in Hong Kong. He was not particularly interested in politics until he entered the London School of Economics and Political Science in the late 1990s to study economics.

“Good economic policies can change the country. But it also needs a good leader to promote and lead good economic policies. So, when I returned Hong Kong after graduation, I was thinking maybe I could put this thinking into practice.”