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Alex Lo
SCMP Columnist
My Take
by Alex Lo
My Take
by Alex Lo

Let the Hong Kong protesters occupy the government headquarters

Senior officials seem more concerned about Occupy protesters having a go at their headquarters in Tamar, with their luxury offices, than the rest of the city being brought to a standstill.

Senior officials seem more concerned about Occupy protesters having a go at their headquarters in Tamar, with their luxury offices, than the rest of the city being brought to a standstill. Police were spotted yesterday sneaking in what appeared to be anti-riot equipment.

All this was in response to threats from the Occupy movement and the Hong Kong Federation of Students that unless Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying resigned, they would block and occupy government buildings. I say let them.

Considering the inept response of the government all the way up and down the chain of command, this is the least our mostly incompetent officials can do for the rest of the innocent and suffering public. Top officials probably think everything will be OK if their chauffeurs can drive them to their spacious offices this morning. Never mind that most of us can't get on buses, minibuses or taxis, while the MTR is even more severely crowded than usual.

Dear sirs and madams in our high-paying civil service and bureaus, I am sure you know it but let me repeat it anyway. The protesters' beef is with you people, not the rest of us. There are plenty of government offices around town where essential staff could continue their daily duties. It's the age of the internet; they don't need to all work at HQ.

Chief Superintendent Hui Chun-tak said police had sufficient manpower and resources to protect all official buildings. "Police will not tolerate any illegal surrounding of government buildings," he said.

No, Mr Hui, let them surround the buildings and stay there. To the protesters now occupying Admiralty, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok, please go take over the Tamar government site and leave the rest of us alone. Your beef is not with us; it's with the government. Let young children go back to their schools in Western, Central and Wan Chai. Let small- shop owners paying back-breaking rents reopen for business.

You want Leung's head. Go to Tamar. Barricade the site for all we care. I know it's not really fair to blame it all on Leung. But hey, it's the perk of the job - all the proverbial excrement falls on your head. Take it like a man, CY. It's between you and the protesters. Work it out - that's your job.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Go occupy the government headquarters
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