Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying: Cunning wolf or loyal government servant?

Now that Hong Kong’s polarising leader Leung Chun-ying has decided against running for a second term, will his friends and foes develop a fairer view of his legacy over the past four years? Deemed either a “cunning wolf” or a loyal down-to-earth government servant depending on one’s perspective, to his friends he has done his best to tackle some social issues, especially the shortage of housing. But to his foes, he has failed to foster cordial relations with them and bridge the social divide. Watch: Leung Chun-ying will not seek a second term Lawmaker Martin Liao Cheung-kong, who was recently appointed to the Executive Council, appreciated his efforts in tackling some livelihood issues, especially the housing problem. “I think his heart was in the right place and he has achieved quite a bit under very difficult circumstances in the past four years, particularly on poverty alleviation and elderly welfare that affect people’s livelihood,” he said. “He has also worked hard to try to resolve the housing problem which I think is one of the most important, if not the most important, social issue in Hong Kong,” he said. Still, Liao expressed regret over his short-lived leadership, saying: “I think given a more harmonious political and social environment, he would have achieved more.” Starry Lee Wai-king, chairwoman of the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, and Michael Tien Puk-sun of the New People’s Party also praised his efforts in easing poverty and the housing shortage. “It’s a great pity that he made this decision because of his family. It’s a tough choice,” Lee said. But Tien admitted that Leung also lost massive credit in handling his relationship with his opponents. Commonly called CY, Leung is often referred to by the unflattering nickname “689” – a derisive dig at the number of votes he received from the 1,200-member Election Committee, suggesting his lack of a firm mandate. But it is undeniable that Leung has boosted housing supply and cracked down on property speculation to cool the market. The latest progress report of his administration’s work published in July estimated the total number of public housing flats generated while he was the city’s leader stood at about 97,100. In other areas, he has also been credited with stopping pregnant mainland women coming to give birth in Hong Kong. He also imposed restrictions on the parallel trading of baby milk powder across the border to safeguard the supply of infant formula for Hong Kong mothers. But these achievements have done little to boost his popularity, which continued to slide from a record high of 56.5 in May 2012, two months after he won the election, to 36.2 in May this year, according to University of Hong Kong tracking polls. Last month, it rebounded to 40.7. Andrew Fung Ho-keung, director and CEO of the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute, said Leung’s heavy-handed approach in suppressing the pan-democrats – especially pro-independence localists – had fanned conflict and deepened social divisions. “The problem is, Beijing always hopes that our leader can foster a harmonious environment in Hong Kong,” he said. His receipt of HK$50 million in a golden handshake from Australian engineering firm UGL without declaring it to the Executive Council also hit him hard. The news broke in October 2014 at the height of the Occupy movement. Leung said at the time he did not feel he had done anything wrong, morally or legally, by accepting the deal. “This [income] is to compensate me for not competing with it [UGL] or poaching its staff, so under the taxation system of Hong Kong there is no need to pay any tax,” he said. His way of handling the Occupy movement in 2014 may have provided him with his sternest test, during which protesters gathered outside government headquarters in Tamar to call for universal suffrage. Clashes led police to use batons and tear gas, a move that deepened Hongkongers’ dislike of him. While some believed the crisis elevated Leung’s standing in the eyes of Beijing, his opponents blamed him for splitting society and acting harshly against the democratic movement. In November 2014, at the height of the street demonstrations in Hong Kong, President Xi Jinping met Leung on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing. Xi praised Leung, citing a line from an ancient poem that translates as “strong winds revealing the strength of sturdy grass”. The pro-democracy protests lasted 79 days and ended after police cleared the last remaining protesters and reopened roads. To his supporters, Leung is a working-class boy made good. Born in 1954 to a police officer father who used to be stationed at Government House, which he would later occupy, Leung won a scholarship to prestigious King’s College. From there he studied at what is now Polytechnic University and later at Bristol Polytechnic in England, working part-time at a takeaway food shop to fund his studies. As a young surveyor at British real estate consultancy Jones Lang Wootton, Leung formed part of a small group of Hong Kong professionals who would regularly make their way across the Lo Wu border in 1979, a year after the mainland started down the path of opening up and reform. He gave lectures on market economics and other topics to mainland officials in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Guangzhou and Shanghai. Since the late 1970s, he has participated in the mainland’s land and housing reforms. Between 1984 and 1997, he was involved in preparatory work for Hong Kong’s handover and the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. In 1988, at just 34, he became secretary general of the Basic Law Consultative Committee. Because of his long association with mainland authorities, rumours have persisted that he is secretly a card-carrying member of the Communist Party. After the handover, he was appointed to the Executive Council and became the convenor of its non-official members between 1999 and 2011. Executive councillor Cheung Chi-kong, a staunch Leung supporter, described him as “a man with a will as strong as steel and iron”, claiming Leung was often misunderstood as being “too stern”. “He is rather serious, but I haven’t seen him scolding others,” he said. “You might say he isn’t sociable. He doesn’t have lunchtime friends,” he added. “As a politician, it might be seen by some as a shortcoming. But some might also see it more positively, that he is independent.”

Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying: Cunning wolf or loyal government servant?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Chief executive managed to polarise society, but he also had admirers

Chief executive managed to polarise society, but he also had admirers