Home affairs chief Caspar Tsui to leave post as Hong Kong leader prepares to discipline officials for attending infamous birthday bash, sources say
- Chief executive says results of a probe into 15 officials who attended party will be announced before start of Lunar New Year
- She added that she was still ‘disappointed’ in Tsui and he remains suspended until after holiday
Home affairs minister Caspar Tsui Ying-wai, the most high-profile Hong Kong official who attended an infamous Omicron-hit birthday bash early this month, is expected to vacate his post despite efforts by several pro-establishment figures to save him from a disgraceful exit, the Post has learned.
A politician well connected with mainland Chinese authorities said city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor wanted Tsui out of the role, but she ran into resistance from the pro-establishment camp, in particular Tsui’s party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB).
The pro-Beijing figure, who is a Hong Kong delegate to the nation’s political advisory body, said Lam was likely to have her way as the central government had already started on the procedures involved. Under the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, the appointment and removal of principal officials in Hong Kong must be approved by the central government.
“The DAB is trying to rescue Tsui. But Tsui will go as the central government will not object if the chief executive insists on firing Tsui,” said the pro-establishment figure, who wished to remain anonymous.
Fifteen officials and 20 lawmakers were among some 200 guests who attended the 53rd birthday party of Witman Hung Wai-man, a delegate to the national legislature, at the Reserva Iberica Spanish restaurant in Wan Chai on January 3. They were all ordered into quarantine for varying periods of time when it emerged two people attended the party while infected with the coronavirus.