Help from Beijing and liaison office could be ‘counterproductive’ for campaign, chief executive hopeful Carrie Lam admits
Former chief secretary pledges to bridge Hong Kong-mainland divide if elected
The front runner in Hong Kong’s leadership race has vowed to tackle anti-mainland sentiment and distrust of big business at their source if she wins the chief executive election this month.
Even as Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor emphasised the need to bridge the divide between the city and the mainland, she admitted that help from Beijing and its liaison office for her could be “counterproductive” for her campaign.
She said she would not publicly ask the liaison office to stop lobbying for her.
“[If you ask them publicly,] you are falling into the trap that you agree that they’re interfering. I don’t know how they are interfering, what did they say, how did they ask for votes. I just don’t know.”
But when asked if she would privately do so, she replied: “This is something not to be disclosed.”
“I’m sure you have seen,” she said. “I have done nothing that deserves this sort of attack, to be very honest with you.” She was referring to criticism that she had Beijing lobbying on her behalf.