Newly elected Hong Kong lawmaker does not rule out giving up pilot job to focus on new duties

When Jeremy Tam Man-ho was announced as a winner in the Legislative Council election at the vote-counting centre on September 5, a dozen Civic Party volunteers, most of whom were middle-aged women, chanted “Pilot, pilot”.

But Tam may need to drop his status as a pilot for one of Hong Kong’s main airlines – which he insisted the South China Morning Post not name – if his flying workload interferes with his new responsibilities as a lawmaker.

His message is clear. “I may have what people regard as a coveted job but what needs my attention more is playing a role that can help Hong Kong get back on the right track,” he said in an interview with the Post.

Tam, a new father of two, said his decision was for the well-being of the next generation. “I am prepared to give up my permanent job,” he said, choosing to prioritise what may only be a four-year position with less than half his current monthly salary.

“In the past few years, we have all seen the deterioration of Hong Kong, with Beijing stepping up its erosion of our society. I don’t want my children to live in an unlivable environment or keep thinking about moving overseas,” he said. “In my view, ‘one country, two systems’ has never been successfully implemented.”

Tam made his first appearance in elections in 2007 – nine years before his eventual success – when he ran as an independent candidate in a district council poll in Tung Chung, where he used to live. He lost to a rival from, well, the Civic Party, which he joined three years later.