Chim Pui-chung had an apology to make. The independent provisional legislator had committed the cardinal sin of failing to support Tung Chee-hwa in the vote on an amendment criticising the policy address. But, as Mr Chim hastily informed fellow councillors, it was simply a matter of having mistakenly pressed the wrong button on the council's electronic voting system.
For years, the debate on the motion of thanks for the policy address was an occasion for legislators to savage then Governor Chris Patten. And yesterday many were reluctant to kick the habit, although it is more than three months since Mr Patten left these shores. Liberal Party leader Allen Lee Peng-fei got so excited at the idea of taking a parting shot at the last Governor that he called him Lord MacLehose by mistake.
By contrast, it was as if there was an unwritten rule barring direct attacks on Mr Tung, even though it was his policy address they were discussing. That explains Mr Chim's rush to explain his accidental pressing of the abstention button, while his colleagues sought to outbid each other in their efforts to lavish congratulations on the Chief Executive.
Even provisional legislators with grassroots affiliations, who could scarcely support Mr Tung over imported labour and care for the elderly, were careful to confine their criticism to specific policies. But Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood Chairman Frederick Fung Kin-kee broke the unwritten rule and - horror of horrors - tried to pin the blame for these directly on the Chief Executive, with an amendment expressing deep regret over several parts of the policy address. Accusations of 'empty talk' and 'stingy government' tripped off his lips, phrases more usually associated with attacks upon Mr Patten.
That brought legislators rushing to Mr Tung's defence. Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong chairman Tsang Yok-sing insisted his party shared such concerns but didn't think it right to attack the Chief Executive in this way. House Committee Chairman Dr Leong Che-hung said the amendment was unnecessary since a motion of thanks did not imply agreement with the contents of the policy address.
As the division bell sounded, the result was never in any doubt. It was almost as if the thud of a giant rubber stamp could be heard, squashing the five legislators who dared to vote against Mr Tung.