A fierce battle over electoral changes to the appointment of the next chief executive and the Legislative Council may still be some way off. But just over a week after the district council elections, the Tung administration faces a severe challenge over its power to appoint members to the various district bodies. On Friday, Democratic Party chairman Yeung Sum succeeded in seeking an urgent motion debate at Legco on Wednesday calling on Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa to select only a minimal number of district councillors. Under the existing system, Mr Tung can appoint up to 102 people to sit on the 18 district bodies, in addition to the 400 members elected in the November 23 polls. Even though Dr Yeung's non-binding motion is likely to be vetoed, Mr Tung will be under enormous pressure to limit his power. Pundits believe he will significantly reduce the number of appointees to possibly about 50, to help ease the political strain. While the district councils were increasingly marginalised before the latest elections, their role has since been redefined. A significant number of the more than one million people who voted did so for candidates from the pan-democratic camp as a show of defiance against the Tung administration. Although they may not have been totally happy with the democratic candidates, it was more important that the government loyalists did not win. The 'politicisation' of the district council balloting has profoundly changed the nature of things. With a large number of voters saying no to the pro-government parties, it will be seen as an affront to the people if Mr Tung chooses those party members to sit on the councils. He will also find it hard to justify the rationale of giving seats to members of political parties which consider elections to be their lifeblood. With more people coming out to cast a vote of no-confidence in the government and its allies, the power of the chief executive to appoint up to one-quarter of the total elected seats will become increasingly vulnerable. A Home Affairs Bureau official said they would take into account the public sentiments expressed in the elections when finalising their appointment list. Until it was abolished in 1995, the appointment system played a key part in bolstering the authority of the colonial rulers. Despite opposition, Mr Tung revived the system in 1999 as a two-pronged strategy to 'depoliticise' district councils and ensure government-friendly forces maintained a majority. The government has promised to review the system following the elections. One leading Democrat said they did not hold out high hopes of being able to grab the Legco seat set aside for the constituency comprised of all district council members. 'We got a clear message from voters that they do not want the power of their votes to be diluted by the appointed seats. It is only right for us to fight against the system,' he said. 'The government feels worried. They have to assess the risk. What if hundreds of thousands of people take to the streets again if they appoint a maximum of 102 seats?' Mr Tung had hoped to be able to wait until after the Legco elections next year before beginning the crucial constitutional review. Following the July 1 protests, he has agreed to give a clear timetable on the review this month. Officials said formal consultations would begin early next year. Now, Mr Tung might have to bow to political pressure again and slash the number of appointed district council seats. Sooner rather than later, he will find that keeping this colonial legacy can hardly be seen to be consistent with his pledge of making progress. Chris Yeung is the Post's editor-at-large chris.yeung@scmp.com
