Hong Kong lawmaker Starry Lee eyed as next chief of city's biggest pro-Beijing party
Vice-chairwoman of city's biggest party tipped to replace Tam Yiu-chung, who will not pursue re-election in April
The chairman of the city's biggest political party says he will step down in less than three months and pass the leadership baton to a younger member.
Tam Yiu-chung, 65, who has led the Beijing-loyalist Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong since 2007, said yesterday that he would not run for another term during the party's leadership election in April.
"The new generation [in the DAB] has made significant progress and shared the leadership work in the past years. It's time for me to step down," the veteran lawmaker told reporters.
With Tam's departure, Starry Lee Wai-king, a DAB vice-chairwoman and also an Executive Council member, is hotly tipped as his successor.
Tam would not comment on whether Lee, 40, was a suitable candidate, saying he would leave it to the party's standing committee to vote for the new leadership.
He first announced his intentions at the party's central committee meeting on Tuesday night. There has been no discussion yet on whether he should seek another term in the Legislative Council next year.