Source:
https://scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2054877/hong-kong-leadership-battle-will-carrie-lam-inherit-leung
Comment/ Opinion

In Hong Kong leadership battle, will Carrie Lam inherit Leung Chun-ying’s pro-Beijing supporters?

Albert Cheng believes the chief secretary will be the establishment candidate in the 2017 leadership race, and the pro-democracy camp, while it did well in recent polls, is no kingmaker

Former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa gives Chief Secretary Carrie Lam a hug during the official ceremony in Shau Kei Wan to commemorate the Nanking massacre. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

The political changes in Hong Kong of late are a strong reminder that a week is a long time in politics. Last Friday, Leung Chun-ying announced that he would not seek a second term in the upcoming chief executive election. The decision came out of the blue; even Leung himself and the central government’s liaison office only received the direct order from Beijing the day before.

Leung cited “family reasons” when he dropped the bombshell, attributing it to his recently hospitalised daughter. It is well known that Chai-yan is emotionally unstable. She is understood to have been a patient in the Prince of Wales Hospital for at least a month. With Leung and his wife finally caught on camera visiting their daughter, the question was, “Why now?” It seems the leak was “scheduled” right before the announcement.