‘A new symphony and I am the conductor,’ says Hong Kong leadership candidate

Hong kong – Hong Kong’s former No. 2 official John Lee, who will run in a management election in Might, mentioned on Saturday he plans a brand new chapter for the worldwide monetary hub that has been wracked by unprecedented upheaval with pro-democracy protests and COVID-19.

Lee, 64, resigned on Wednesday to run to switch Chief Government Carrie Lam, whose five-year time period ends on June 30. Lam oversaw one of the crucial tumultuous durations in Hong Kong historical past with pro-democracy demonstrations and the coronavirus.

“This can be a brand new symphony and I’m the conductor,” Lee, who was the town’s safety chief throughout anti-government protests in 2019, informed a information convention.

“Collectively, we are going to play a extra splendid new piece for Hong Kong.”

Fleshing out his coverage platform, Lee mentioned loyalty to the central authorities was a precedence for any chief govt and a part of his platform included accelerating plans to resolve the town’s power housing scarcity.

Hong Kong media reviews mentioned this week that Beijing officers need Lee to be the one candidate, and won’t give the inexperienced mild to others to face towards him.

Lee mentioned he welcomed every other management contenders.

The town’s 4 largest property tycoons, together with CK Asset’s Victor Li, son of billionaire Li Ka-shing, mentioned in separate statements this week that Lee was an acceptable candidate to guide Hong Kong to stability.

The present of assist from a number of the metropolis’s strongest property tycoons got here earlier than Lee formally introduced his bid to run for chief, signalling the transfer had already been authorized and acquired a tacit OK from some Hong Kong enterprise folks.

Lee is the primary particular person to announce a bid for the worldwide monetary heart’s high put up for the reason that nomination interval opened on Sunday.

Different doable contenders talked about in media embrace the town’s monetary secretary, Paul Chan, in addition to former chief Leung Chun-ying. None has introduced a bid.

Lee, a former profession police officer, is broadly anticipated to prioritize safety points if he will get the highest job, having beforehand urged new laws to completely implement a sweeping nationwide safety legislation Beijing imposed on the town in 2020.

He has additionally warned about lingering underground “terrorist” and independence actions.

The previous deputy commissioner of police was sanctioned by america, together with different Hong Kong and Chinese language officers, for what Washington described as their function in curbing Hong Kong’s freedoms beneath the safety legislation.

Hong Kong and Chinese language authorities deny particular person rights are being eroded and say the safety laws was wanted to revive stability after extended unrest in 2019.

Final 12 months, as Hong Kong’s safety chief, Lee despatched letters to media tycoon Jimmy Lai and branches of HSBC and Citibank threatening as much as seven years’ jail for any dealings with the billionaire’s accounts within the metropolis, in line with paperwork seen by Reuters.

Lam appointed Lee from heading safety coverage to Chief Secretary in June 2021, broadening his authorities expertise and obligations. He continued to take a hawkish stance on safety points in his new function.

Below recent calls for by Beijing that solely “patriots” be allowed to run Hong Kong, Lee led efforts to display the candidates to legislature elections final December.

Writing on a weblog forward of the ballot, Lee mentioned that “harmful” international brokers have been intentionally making an attempt to hinder the ballot.

He additionally publicly rejected international media criticism of the election and Hong Kong’s safety crackdown, writing letters to the Wall Road Journal, the Economist and Bloomberg Information.

“If something was ‘rigged’, it was the intentionally distorted picture of Hong Kong that has been manipulated from the darkish aspect of 1’s private inner bias,” Lee wrote in a letter to the Economist dated Jan. 11 and posted on a metropolis authorities web site.