THE latest civil service reshuffle was supposed to be announced last Tuesday. But with the administration now more preoccupied with propping up the ailing property market, it is perhaps no surprise it got postponed.
The last time Tung Chee-hwa was accused of holding up government appointments, he privately fumed to senior colleagues over how 'unfair' this column was being about him. So perhaps it would be only fair to give him the benefit of the doubt this time, and not be too hasty in concluding that last week's delay was because the relevant papers were still sitting on his desk, awaiting approval - something which has been a persistent problem since the handover.
But, whatever the reason, this reshuffle cannot be delayed much longer. After all, legislators have already approved the setting-up of Invest Hong Kong - a new government body charged with trying to attract more foreign companies to the SAR. And as one of the posts to be filled in this reshuffle is that of the body's director, it cannot start work until there is an announcement.
Not that it is any secret who will fill this new job of Director-General of Investment Promotion. Recent press leaks have left little room for doubt that the post will go to Tourism Commissioner Mike Rowse.
That will come as little surprise to anyone familiar with the bitter debate which has raged in government in recent years over how to correct the shortcomings in the Government's present set-up for attracting foreign companies to the SAR.
Until now, this has been left in the hands of an inward investment unit in the Industry Department, staffed by ex-engineers in a hangover from earlier decades, when Hong Kong was still a base for manufacturing.
While Singapore and other regional rivals take a highly proactive approach towards encouraging foreign businesses, this unit's approach could hardly have been more different. 'They just sat there and waited for people to knock on the door,' complained one critic.