Pro-Beijing politicians criticised for posing for photo at deadly Hong Kong fire scene

But lawmaker who represents district where building went ablaze defends his fellow DAB party members, claiming they showed up to help those affected

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The four DAB politicians at the scene of the fire in Ngau Tau Kok. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Published: 2:30pm, 22 Jun 2016Updated: 5:12pm, 22 Jun 2016

Pro-Beijing politicians have drawn criticism for appearing to seek political advantage following a blaze that claimed the life of a Hong Kong fireman.

A photo that was uploaded Tuesday afternoon and later went viral online showed four district-level politicians of the pro-Beijing party Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong posing for photographs near the Ngau Tau Kok industrial building that went up in flames. Fire department vehicles appear in the background.

The four included Or Chong-shing, who has been tipped to run for a Legislative Council seat in September. Since the fire erupted on Tuesday, he has posted eight Facebook messages to salute the firemen, including personal portraits and appeals for affected residents to seek help from his team.

Or could not be reached for comment. Although the four councillors logged on to their Facebook accounts hours before the death Tuesday evening of senior station officer Thomas Cheung, many online questioned the judgment of the four DAB party members.

By noon Wednesday, more than 600 Facebook likes went to a comment on a page by user ArmChannel that attached a picture showing four Philippine police officers who stood side by side in front of the tour bus involved in a hostage crisis in Manila in 2010 that left eight Hongkongers dead.