Out of the blue, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee delivered in this newspaper this week an erudite critique of democracy. Titled “Hong Kong must wake up from its blind faith in ‘one man, one vote’ democracy” and referencing Plato and Aristotle, among other heavy thinkers, the Executive Council and Legislative Council member urged local people to open their eyes to evidence that “democratic elections elsewhere have not delivered the good governance they crave”. Some readers have been scratching their heads. Why a discourse on democracy now, when no one is fretting about it in Hong Kong these days? The national security law and the electoral overhaul have done their jobs well. Here’s my two cents. It’s all about timing. Next week, the nomination period for the chief executive race will start. So far, except for a comical bid by a kung fu master and YouTuber, no serious contenders have thrown their hat into the ring. I know of no one in Hong Kong who craves the top job more and is, probably, able to do it better. I qualify the last statement by saying that instead of big shoes, she would have some rather tiny ones to fill from the chief executives we have had so far. Ip failed to collect sufficient nominations from the Election Committee to join the chief executive race in 2012 and 2017. But now that the previous election system has been completely “improved”, Ip will have a chance, so long as she can get Beijing’s blessing. And why not? Who among her council colleagues has been more loyal and tireless in fighting for Hong Kong and Beijing’s interests against foreign forces? And who has her experience? No surprise scholar from hostile NGO denied visa She was director of immigration and secretary for security. In the latter role, she got the short end of the stick and had to quit after the government of Tung Chee-hwa was forced to shelve security legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law. She went to the United States, received an advanced degree in political science and came back with a complete makeover that made her much easier on the eye. She then successfully launched a think tank and a political party, and won in three Legco elections. The woman lives and breathes politics, just not democratic politics. But that’s OK; read her Post article. With the national security law in place, legislation for Article 23 will be a sure win for Ip. That’s what I call closure.