THE establishment of five competing centres of power between now and the end of British rule on June 30, 1997, would destabilise Hong Kong, demoralise the civil service and be bad for business, former Legislative Councillor Emily Lau Wai-hing warned yesterday.
But she claimed the media had failed to bring the dangers into the open.
In addition, coverage of the Legco election campaign had been 'dismal' and 'appalling'.
Journalists were either lazy or part of a conspiracy of silence, she said.
Speaking at the Foreign Correspondents' Club, Ms Lau said the 'Team Designate' under the future first Chief Executive would be a government-in-waiting and would compete for authority with the Legislative Council, the Hong Kong Government, the Preparatory Committee and the Provisional Legislature.
Anyone trying to deal with all five would be 'run off their legs', she said. Everyone would be looking over their shoulders to see what the other institutions were doing. The civil service would be working 16-hour days.
'It's bad enough having to face the wrath of Emily Lau in Legco,' she said. Now they would have to face five different groups.
