Acting chief executive will hold question-and-answer sessions Donald Tsang Yam-kuen plans to spell out the platform on which he will run for chief executive in a series of forums next month to enlist the support of Election Committee members. A Hong Kong deputy to the National People's Congress said the acting chief executive would organise six to eight question-and-answer sessions. Mr Tsang is expected to declare his candidacy for the election this week. 'Mr Tsang may also seek nominations from the committee members at these forums,' the NPC deputy said. In January 2002, Tung Chee-hwa held four sessions for Election Committee members while preparing to run in his second election for chief executive. He was returned uncontested with more than 90 per cent support from the 800-strong committee. The NPC deputy said Mr Tsang planned to explain his platform at consultative forums because he wanted to run a better campaign than his former boss. The acting chief executive is scheduled to deliver a keynote address today at the launch of a report prepared by the Council for Sustainable Development. Sources said that the event had originally been scheduled for Friday but was then brought forward by three days. Mr Tsang is also due to attend a meeting of the Legislative Council tomorrow, during which a bill seeking to limit the term of the next chief executive to the remainder of Mr Tung's term is expected to be passed. Mr Tsang said last week he would make a decision on whether to stand in the chief executive election after the passage of the amendment to the Chief Executive Election Ordinance. Chan Wing-kee, a member of a standing committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, believed Mr Tsang would treat the chief executive race like a direct election. 'I think he will face the public and go to various districts to seek public support after he declares his bid,' Mr Chan said. A total of 30 Election Committee members from seven sub-sectors, including education, accounting, and the legal and medical sectors, plan to hold an election forum on June 11. Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, one of the committee members spearheading the forum, said they would send invitation letters today to Mr Tsang and two legislators who have already declared they will run - Democratic Party chairman Lee Wing-tat and independent lawmaker Chim Pui-chung. Mr Lee said he had been invited to attend more than 10 election forums, but added it was unlikely he would win the 100 nominations needed to compete in the race.
