Former senior official says Hong Kong government’s ‘many shortcomings’ exposed by coronavirus pandemic
- ‘This anti-epidemic battle exposed all kinds of administrative deficiencies, and weakened some people’s confidence in the government,’ says former commerce minister Frederick Ma
- Ma identifies executive failings, a severe housing shortage, an ageing population and an over-reliance on the financial industry as major issues facing Hong Kong
Former commerce minister Frederick Ma Si-hang has urged the Hong Kong government to reflect and improve on its “many shortcomings” exposed by the surging fifth wave of coronavirus infections.
Ma, who was a senior official from 2002 to 2008, also told the Post in an interview on Tuesday he hoped the winner of the leadership race in May could form a “competent governing team” to lead Hong Kong over the next five years.
“The pandemic will pass, but I need to point out some deep-seated problems,” he said. “I don’t have a solution myself, [but] we must use the right people to solve the problems. As [the late Singaporean prime minister] Lee Kuan Yew said, ‘The art of government is to get the right people to the right place.’”
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Hong Kong has been struggling to contain its fifth wave of infections since late December. Authorities recorded 27,765 infections and 289 related fatalities on Tuesday, taking the death toll for the entire pandemic to 4,568.
In a column published by the Sing Tao Daily on Tuesday, Ma said the administration’s inability to execute policies was one of four deep-rooted issues plaguing the city. The others, according to Ma, were the housing shortage, the ageing population and an over-reliance on the financial industry.
“This anti-epidemic battle exposed all kinds of administrative deficiencies and weakened some people’s confidence in the government. Whether in overall coordination, or in policy execution, there are many shortcomings that should have been avoided,” he wrote. “[The government] must make improvements immediately on this front, and face the criticism.”
Ma also expressed hope that Hong Kong would be led by someone “with a broad vision”.
“He or she must work hard to maintain and boost team spirit, so that the government will be united in achieving good governance, and win the people’s understanding and support,” he wrote.
Ma added that he wanted capable politicians to join the administration and work with seasoned civil servants to solve the city’s problems.
In his interview with the Post, Ma clarified that he was not singling out Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, but added: “When the central government is also saying that there are things that we didn’t do well enough, shouldn’t we also reflect on ourselves?”
In meetings earlier this month, Chinese Vice-Premier Han Zheng told local pro-Beijing politicians that Hong Kong authorities needed to take “strong and decisive measures” to reduce the coronavirus death rate and prioritise care for the elderly.
Ma said that as a former official, he felt he should offer his advice, calling the pandemic the city’s biggest challenge since its return from British to Chinese rule in 1997, the 25th anniversary of which will be celebrated in July.
“I left the government 14 years ago … and I just deeply hope that we will do better in the next 25 years,” he said. “It’s like a football fan watching a match. I wanted the team to play well, and it’s now halftime. Of course I want the second half to be better than the first.”
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Ma, who turned 70 last month, served as secretary for financial services and the treasury between 2002 and 2007, and as secretary for commerce and economic development from 2007 to 2008.
He said that during his days in public administration, the government led the city to overcome all kinds of difficulties, including financial and socio-economic ones, but none were as acute and prolonged as the pandemic.
“When it rained, there was some water leakage in the house, but not as bad,” he said. “This time, it is a prolonged torrential downpour, and we are realising that the leakage problem is worse than we thought. This is a wake-up call, showing that there are really problems with our executive capabilities.”
Ma added that he still believed the city would overcome the current crisis, just as it had survived past ones.
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Earlier this month, Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, was quoted as saying that the city’s “patriots-only” governing class must possess certain attributes, such as being responsible and capable.
But Ma said he would not comment on whether Lam had those qualities, and professed not to be interested in the coming chief executive election in May, noting the 1,500-strong Election Committee would choose the city’s next leader.
“I’m not an Election Committee member, so I have no vote,” he said, adding that at his age, it was “impossible” for him to rejoin the administration.
Ma said he had been compelled to speak out in the hope that the city could remain an attractive metropolis in the decades to come.
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“I just hope that our next generation, including my grandchildren, will live in a very nice, international city, where they can live happily … and trust the government,” he said.
In an ideal Hong Kong, he said, residents would enjoy “good job opportunities” when they were young and would not “need to worry about home ownership and what will happen when they grow old”.
Ma also said he was concerned about residents and expatriates leaving the city amid the pandemic.
“We have built up our city for so many years, and it’s a nice place. We don’t want to see its vibrancy weakening.”
