Flying Sand | Recipe for disaster being served up in Hong Kong’s incendiary political kitchen

As Hong Kong shivers its way through a bitter cold snap, the phrase “if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen” would – under normal circumstances – have been deliciously funny.

However, given the current state of affairs in our city, only those in denial or devoid of critical faculties could fail to see the deeply depressing truth at the heart of comments made by Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor before the meeting of her cabinet on Tuesday morning.

No integrity issue, Hong Kong’s leader says, defending justice chief in illegal structure saga

This was Lam’s answer: “ … I do not feel this is an integrity issue, and that’s why it will not compromise Teresa’s position as secretary for justice. It is now very difficult to really attract talented people to come into the administration because of the political situation, and that’s why people describe this situation as being a very hot kitchen.

“For a very successful lawyer with an international reputation like Teresa to make up her mind to join my team is a very difficult and tough decision which could only have been made with one purpose in mind, and that is to serve the people of Hong Kong and to serve the country.”

Correct me if I am wrong, but in essence, Lam just admitted that she was forced to hire Cheng because in the increasingly toxic political environment in which Hong Kong finds itself, virtually no one wanted to take on one of the most important jobs in government.

Ipso facto, even if an official – whose core responsibility is to uphold the system of law and justice which has served the city so well over decades – is found to have broken the law, we simply have to suck it up and let her get on with the job, regardless of the damage it might do to the integrity of the system, because there ain’t no alternative.