I don’t feel isolated, Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying insists
Leader reveals his thoughts in interview with dentist Eugene Chan, who is then appointed to head RTHK’s board of advisers
The “ABC” or “Anything But CY” slogan may be picking up steam for next year’s leadership election, but Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying is insisting he is not feeling isolated or lonely at the top.
In an interview with Metro Daily published over two days, Hong Kong’s top official, who is expected to seek another five-year term next March, dismissed suggestions he had few friends left.
“If I had no friends, I couldn’t have performed so many public and social duties. These tasks have to be done together with other people,” Leung told his supporter and dentist Eugene Chan Kin-keung, who was invited by the newspaper to conduct the interview – and who was appointed by Leung on Friday as chairman of broadcaster RTHK’s board of advisers.
A video clip of the interview released on Thursday showed Leung, Chan and another interviewer in the kitchen of Government House, preparing dumplings together. A second clip on Friday showed Leung talking about his friends.
The “ABC” slogan was first floated at the last chief executive race in 2012, when Leung successfully ran against former chief secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen. The phrase surfaced again recently and was adopted as the election platform by some candidates for the Legislative Council elections in September.
Leung said on Thursday he would welcome competition if he was running, when asked to comment on the possibility of outgoing Legco president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing and Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah joining the race for the top job.