Policy address is Leung's last chance to show Hong Kong he can lead
Joseph Wong says the policy address may be Leung's last chance to prove he is fit to govern, and he will do best by focusing on achievable goals, rather than seemingly intractable problems
Responding to the massive protests on New Year's Day calling for Leung Chun-ying to step down, a government spokesman said the chief executive was concentrating on preparing his first policy address, working on various areas, including people's livelihood and the economy, addressing deep-rooted problems, and promoting stability in society. But will Leung succeed in convincing Hong Kong people that, despite his irreparable integrity problems, he is capable of leading them in the next five years?
When he delivers his first policy address on Wednesday, the one thing he will not talk about is his illegal structures. This could mean he will not deliberate on how to tackle the widespread illegal structures in the New Territories, which is one of the deep-rooted problems that need to be addressed.
Likewise, given the tensions between the pro- and anti-Leung camps, any message in the policy address aimed at promoting harmony in society will not be taken seriously.
But there is still a lot Leung can say that will have a positive effect on his governance. To start with, he can present a five-year government blueprint, putting forward concrete policy proposals based on his election manifesto. There will be long-term strategies, no doubt; but I would be very surprised if there were no handouts in various forms for the underprivileged sector of the community. Leung knows that the low-income, the less educated and the elderly are his most loyal and staunch supporters.
On a broader front, the vast majority of the people will watch carefully what Leung will say about their three major concerns: housing and property prices; the ageing population and retirement protection; and the environment.
On housing, Leung could fulfil his election promise to bring forward by one year the completion of about half of the 75,000 public rental flats already pledged by the previous administration. Beyond this, there is not much the Leung government can do to produce more public housing flats in the short term.