Democratic Party's Wu Chi-wai blasts Carrie Lam's defence of nomination plan as an 'attempt to deceive'

A pan-democrat lawmaker has accused the government of "trying to deceive" Hongkongers by arguing that the body responsible for putting forward chief executive candidates in 2017 will be "more democratic" as its members will be able to vote for more than one nominee.

The Democratic Party's Wu Chi-wai reiterated that his camp would vote down the government's reform package as it would deprive voters of a "genuine" choice of candidates.

Last month, the government unveiled a package that strictly followed a National People's Congress' ruling . It proposed that when Hong Kong elects its leader by "one man, one vote" in 2017, voters must choose from two or three candidates endorsed by the majority of a 1,200-strong nominating committee.

Hopefuls will enter an internal primary after they secure 120 to 240 recommendations from the committee, meaning there could be between five and 10 primary candidates. However, only the top two or three who win at least 601 votes will go forward.

In 2012, winner Leung Chun-ying, former chief secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen and Democrat Albert Ho Chun-yan entered a three-horse race with 390, 305 and 188 nominations respectively, from a 1,193-strong Election Committee. Leung won the election with 689 votes.

Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor recently argued that the government's proposal would make the nominating committee more "democratic" as each member could vote for two to 10 candidates in the primary, meaning the public slate would be more unpredictable.

Pro-establishment lawmaker Michael Tien Puk-sun, from the New People's Party, endorsed that view and suggested even a moderate pan-democrat could get through.