Opinion | New Year rally supporting Leung shames the city
Albert Cheng faults their antagonistic attitude towards the media, dodgy allies, and suspected practice of recruiting and paying 'demonstrators'
There is an old Chinese saying that "a man must despise himself before others will". It was shameful that some questionable groups, including suspected triad members, apparently took part in the rally on New Year's Day to support Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying.
The incident embarrassed not only the pro-establishment camp, but also Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong and the central government.
Leung was thick-skinned enough to ignore the vociferous protests on July 1 last year when he took office. Ever since, Hong Kong has seen its political and social conflicts worsen.
Conflict exists not only between the pro-democracy and the pro-establishment camps. We are now seeing worsening conflict within the pro-government camp, with a number of factions forming.
Leung's fatal flaw is trusting the wrong person and listening to the wrong advice from his "comrade" - Shiu Sin-por, head of the Central Policy Unit. Shiu said recently that the think tank is a government tool responsible for selling its policies. He also stressed that the administration must engage in a public relations battle to win support. It's obvious that the government is taking a more aggressive approach in pushing its policies.
Meanwhile, pro-government groups are also coming out of the woodwork to show their support for Leung, which was evident during the New Year's Day march. These supporters were antagonistic and aggressive towards reporters and the anti-government crowd.