Henry Tang in baptism of fire on reform
It was Chief Secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen's first visit to the Legislative Council's constitutional affairs panel since he took charge of the 'hot seat' on constitutional reform, and lawmakers spared no effort in grilling him.
Even the usually measured tones of veteran Democrat Yeung Sum flashed with passion as he upbraided Mr Tang for failing to answer whether Beijing would deal with the possibility of introducing universal suffrage in 2017 when it considers the chief executive's recently submitted report on reform. Jabbing his finger at Mr Tang, Dr Yeung shouted: 'This is an issue of integrity. Answer me.'
Mr Tang's smile did not waver as he rejoined: 'Isn't taking turns to speak the rule here?'
Government-friendly lawmaker Lui Ming-wah, who chairs the panel, provoked another outburst from Dr Yeung when he intervened, saying Mr Tang had already answered. An infuriated Dr Yeung, almost leaping from his chair, said: 'How dare you make such a ruling? I will get to the bottom of this with you.'
The matter, it turned out, was far from finished. The lawmakers passed a motion demanding that Mr Tang attend another meeting by the end of the week.
