With a tone of pity in his voice, China's top spokesman on Hong Kong, Lu Ping , confirmed rumours in May that the post-handover Chief Executive could have been chosen as early as 1994 if it were not for the political wrangling between the mainland and Britain.
Speaking to United States-based ABC News, he revealed the two sovereigns had agreed to sit down to choose future leaders who were acceptable to the British, the mainland and Hong Kong by 1994 or 1995.
'We also even thought of having a vice-governor, a Chinese vice-governor before July 1, 1997, so that by July 1, this vice-governor could be Chief Executive,' he said.
Both mainland and British leaders were apparently looking to the top echelons of the civil service.
China has often spoken highly of these men and women. The 190,000-strong civil service has been hailed as a pivotal force that keeps the capitalist enclave prosperous and as a stable and essential element behind the economic miracle.
Who then would be more acceptable to the civil service as Chief Executive than one from their own rank and file? Continuity and stability aside, the beauty of a leader with a civil service background is their independence and impartiality over sectoral interests, at least at the start.
Therefore, it is no surprise that a top administrator from the Government has been seen as an appropriate choice to head the Special Administrative Region.
