Hasty retreat met with delays

Time was flying, Chief Executive-designate Tung Chee-hwa told reporters at a Beijing press conference following the Preparatory Committee's decision on methods for the first SAR elections.

He and his wife Betty were heading for the airport to catch a flight back to Hong Kong. Mr Tung made a point about their need to catch the plane as the reason for not taking more questions Last Friday afternoon, the couple hastily boarded a limousine outside the Great Hall of the People, apparently rushing to reach the check-in desk. But a few minutes after reporters waved goodbye to them, they spotted the couple again - not in the departure lounge, but at the Hong Kong Macau Centre hotel where they had spent the past few days.

The couple, together with a team of officials from Hong Kong, were forced to spend an extra night in the Chinese capital because of the problems with Dragonair aircraft engines.

Journalists who have been covering Mr Tung's activities are well aware of the fact that Hong Kong's leader-in-waiting will not answer questions if he's not fully prepared.

One of his standard answers to unexpected questions is: 'I'll talk to you later.' When his speech has been delivered at a public function, he alters it slightly, telling the press: 'I will talk to you tomorrow.' That was the reply he frequently gave when he bumped into reporters during the plenary session of the Preparatory Committee. At one point, tired with the same ploy for dodging awkward questions related to the committee's work, one journalist decided to see how Mr Tung would deal with an 'alternative' question.

He asked: 'Are you the chief executive, Mr Tung?' Mr Tung withheld his standard answer. He stopped and fixed the reporter with a penetrating gaze. The silence continued for some minutes, but the inquiry failed to elicit a reply of any kind from Mr Tung.