Hong Kong people have long been sceptical of the logic of China processing mainlanders' applications to emigrate to the territory. The recent upsurge in illegal arrivals of mainland children gives fresh impetus for demands to end the practice.
Parents of mainland children are known to be frustrated with the long waiting time for their children to immigrate legally to Hong Kong to be reunited with their families.
The problem is not that Hong Kong has no orderly immigration programme for Hong Kong residents' mainland-born children. It is that the daily one-way permit quota is abused.
Locals who have relatives waiting to be reunited with them have heard stories of how huge bribes have to be paid.
A lot of them are fed up because they cannot afford it and they are frustrated because calls for a fair quota allocation system appear to have fallen on deaf ears.
This has prompted a stronger voice within the community for granting the Special Administrative Region (SAR) government the right to vet the applications. Many in Hong Kong believe this is a logical answer to corruption and to ensure those entitled to residency can come here at a reasonable time.