My Take | Resignations as government cleans house

RTHK and the civil service are considered by some to be too independent and need to be reined in

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Director of Broadcasting Leung Ka-wing leaves the RTHK headquarters in Kowloon Tong. Photo: May Tse

Published: 12:09am, 20 Feb 2021Updated: 12:09am, 20 Feb 2021

Embattled RTHK chief Leung Ka-wing is stepping down almost half a year before his contract expires. Michael Ngan Mo-chau, head of a defunct civil servants’ union that had openly supported anti-government protesters, will quit as a Labour Department officer. He would have been sacked anyway as he had already declared he would not take a loyalty oath required of civil servants under the national security law.

In other words, the government’s housecleaning is moving full steam ahead.

At a time when the future of the public broadcaster has become uncertain, Leung’s leadership has been criticised as ineffective and passive.

He might have supported his journalist troops in the name of press freedom and editorial independence. Or he could have followed the government’s lead to become an effective mouthpiece.

The existential question facing RTHK is precisely this: whether it’s to be an independent broadcaster or a government announcer.

RTHK’s TV House on Broadcast Drive in Kowloon Tong. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

By failing to take a clear stance, Leung has been rounded on by government critics and government officials alike. A veteran journalist, he will be replaced by Deputy Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Li Pak-chuen, a safe pair of hands.