DAB leader Starry Lee urges CY Leung to pay attention to ministers’ morale after Hong Kong cabinet reshuffle

Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's governance could be hampered if ministers were "frightened and lost their peace of mind" following the replacement of two cabinet members last week, the leader of Hong Kong's biggest pro-establishment party warned yesterday.

Starry Lee Wai-king, chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, also said that central government officials' recent "acknowledgement" of Leung's work should not be interpreted to mean Beijing was supporting his re-election. It was still too early for Beijing to comment on the issue, she added.

Asked whether Leung had deepened political divisions in the city, Lee suggested both Leung's "tough character" and the pan-democrats' oppositional style were to blame.

"[Leung's remarks have] caused some conflicts … but it is unfair if we only take note of his relatively tough character, but ignore what he has done during his tenure," Lee said.

"We also have to criticise those people in the Legislative Council who called for Leung to step down even before he took office," she said in an apparent reference to some pan-democrats.

Last Tuesday, Leung abruptly announced the replacement of secretary for home affairs Tsang Tak-sing and secretary for the civil service Paul Tang Kwok-wai, sparking questions about whether he was trying to remove dissident voices, and whether the move would have a chilling effect on other ministers.