Democratic Party caught in dilemma over Albert Ho's 'referendum' plan
Lawmaker Albert Ho Chun-yan's gambit to quit his 'super seat' and force a by-election finds his party caught between a rock ... and a referendum
After Democrat Albert Ho Chun-yan dropped his bombshell three weeks ago that he planned to resign his Legco "super seat" to trigger a de facto referendum, reaction in the pan-democratic camp was decidedly muted - until Sunday's pro-democracy march.
The group bought time by setting up an eight-member committee to study his proposal, giving no hint on which way they were leaning. The cautious stance stood in stark contrast to that of just months ago when the idea of a de facto referendum was a topic debated feverishly during the Occupy protests.
Indeed, the suggestion was viewed then as a decisive turning point in persuading the occupiers to retreat and regroup around the proposal.
But the idea was abandoned after protracted discussion involving various stakeholders - inside and outside the legislature - failed to secure a deal on the path to implementation.
Beneath the cool reception to Ho's gambit was widespread scepticism that it was an opportunistic move, coming just one month after the Occupy protests.
Ex-Democrat and now NeoDemocrat Gary Fan Kwok-wai even accused his former party colleagues of pushing for the referendum for their own election advantage in the future. The irony, though, was that Fan had earlier pressed Ho to trigger a by-election. But now, he declared, the "ideal timing" had passed.
