SIR Ti Liang Yang said yesterday he wanted Chief Secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang to stay on in the post if he became chief executive. And said he thought he had a better than even chance of winning. Sir Ti Liang, speaking on his return from holiday in Britain, said Mrs Chan would greatly support him in running the Government and her presence was important to maintaining stability. 'If I am the chief executive, Mrs Chan staying on would give me a big hand. It would be a great honour too,' he said. People did not want to see major changes after the handover, Sir Ti Liang said. Maintaining the stability of the Government and keeping senior and junior civil servants in their posts was crucial to confidence. But he said it was not appropriate for him to ask Mrs Chan now to stay on. He said the news that businessman and Hospital Authority chairman Peter Woo Kwong-ching and former High Court judge Arthur Garcia were interested in the post would provide a wider choice. 'I have generated some very rough ideas about how to rule the territory . . . but I still need to discuss them with my friends and see if they are reasonable,' he said. Xu Ximin, a standing committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and Ann Tse-kai, vice-chairman of the consultative conference and the Preparatory Committee, were among the friends he was consulting. Xinhua (the News China News Agency) Director Zhou Nan said he welcomed more people standing, but refused to comment on individual candidates. Millions of dollars will be needed to pay for hotel rooms and food for dignitaries attending the handover ceremony, acting Chief Secretary Michael Suen Ming-yeung said yesterday. The Government will seek Legislative Council approval on its funding next month. Democratic Party legislators have said the British and Chinese governments should foot most of the bill.
