The so-called debate of the century between Donald Tsang Yam-kuen and Audrey Eu Yuet-mee over political reform is finally behind us. As expected, it was an issue-based debate, with both sides presenting their arguments. We didn't expect much of a performance from the chief executive. But, still, he stepped up to the challenge to explain to the public how Hong Kong's political system should progress. It was like trying to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. But, in the end, he lost even more. Put plainly, he had his hands tied; but even if it had been a free-sparring contest, he would still have lost.
Eu clearly showed her debating skills were miles ahead of Tsang's throughout the event. She seemed to have gone through a lot of training to prepare for the debate. Her performance was brilliant; her body language, her speeches, and even the tears in her eyes; everything was perfectly scripted.
Strictly speaking, Eu didn't really deliver a stellar performance that wowed the whole of Hong Kong. She won hands down mostly because her opponent's performance was nowhere near in the same league. When it comes to having to improvise and respond on the spot, Tsang is no match for Eu.
Judging from her performance, it's not an exaggeration to name her Hong Kong's best 'political actress', while Tsang came across as unprepared because he appeared nervous and wasn't as polished. This proves that politicians who have had a baptism of fire in direct elections have better 'acting skills' than government officials.
In hindsight, if the government had allowed in a live audience, who most likely would have heckled Tsang, it might have earned him a few sympathy points from the public.
Tsang's performance seemed to pick up towards the end of the debate; a University of Hong Kong poll showed that public support simultaneously shot up from 5 per cent to 20 per cent. But the battle was already lost.
During the debate, Eu insisted on abolishing all Legislative Council functional constituencies while Tsang firmly maintained that the present constitutional reform package was the best we could ask for from Beijing. Politically, Tsang may be more conservative than Eu, but he was merely being practical.