Could Tsang v Lam shape up as elites v the people in Hong Kong chief executive battle?
John Tsang is seen as the friend of big business who takes a conservative view on spending public money, while Carrie Lam wants to tackle the wealth gap and bridge the social divide
Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and John Tsang Chun-wah may share a similar career trajectory of having spent decades in government service, but they are hardly cut from the same ideological cloth.
If Tsang throws his hat into the ring in the coming days and runs for chief executive, their approaches to social issues, a fast emerging difference between the two, could be the defining feature of their election battle.
Tsang, who joined the government in 1982, is a firmer believer in “big market, small government” and favours minimal government intervention.
But Lam, who joined the administration two years earlier after graduating from the University of Hong Kong, has sought to highlight the need to support the disadvantaged and to promote balanced development, given the city’s widening income inequality and hefty fiscal surplus.
The difference in their governing philosophy has given rise to a perception that Tsang is backed by the city’s elites and favours the status quo, while Lam is supported by people who favour a proactive approach to tackling social ills. While they may naturally appeal to such constituencies, academics warn against portraying the pair as representing exclusively the interests of opposing social classes or blocs. The candidates themselves are going to some lengths not to be painted into one corner, with Lam stressing she is not a socialist and Tsang uploading pictures of himself bonding with ordinary people.