‘When will you die?’: Hong Kong leader CY Leung sidesteps radical lawmaker’s question about his lifespan

Radical lawmaker Wong Yuk-man might have earned a reputation for throwing objects at officials, but he hit the chief executive with something else entirely yesterday, asking Leung Chun-ying: "When will you die?"

And the beleaguered leader - who was grilled by lawmakers from across the spectrum over "unfulfilled" election pledges - was told he could not escape the pointed inquiry at his Legislative Council question-and-answer session. Legco president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing decided that, since the question was political in nature, Leung should reply.

Leung sidestepped Wong's point, instead reciting a line of poetry by Mao Zedong : "Having too many grumbles is detrimental to health." He then wished Wong "a long life".

There was less courtesy later in the day when Tsang addressed his decision to reject a request by his Beijing-loyalist ally, unionist Wong Kwok-kin, to rule the question out of order. "Neither the chief executive, I, nor the members of the public need the Honourable Wong Kwok-kin's lectures on what can and cannot be said," Tsang added.

Wong Yuk-man asked about Leung's lifespan when Tsang pressed him to get to the point of a rant in which he accused the chief executive of "badmouthing" and "betraying" Hong Kong on visits to the mainland.

Wong asked the president not to interrupt, reminding him "someone" had "fixed" his brother Tsang Tak-sing - who was removed as home affairs minister in July. Tsang silently fixed his eyes on Wong, who asked the question he said constituents had demanded he raise - how long did Leung have left to live?

READ MORE: But you promised! Hong Kong leader CY Leung faces Legco grilling over unfulfilled election pledges

Asked by the other Wong to rule out the question, Tsang said: "It is perfectly possible for the chief executive to respond."

Leung proved less poetic in his response to another radical, "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung. The League of Social Democrats chairman asked the chief executive to pick from a range of "unresolved" issues to respond to - from his claims the Occupy protests were the result of meddling from external forces to progress on a universal pension. The chief executive said the government had touched on the issues raised.

The confrontation continued until the last question from Dr Joseph Lee Kok-long, who asked Leung about the government's efforts at "decolonisation", including the covering up of crown insignia on old postboxes. Lee said his question was inspired by a conversation with a six-year-old girl - a jab at Leung's claim in January to have fielded questions about housing from a boy of five.