The government will submit a proposal during the second half of this year to close a loophole that permits lawmakers to resign only to run again in the by-election.

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam said Tuesday, the government would strike a balance between protecting election rights under the Basic Law and preventing misuse of public money for needless by-elections. Sources said the government had considered several alternatives, including filling mid-term vacancies with the candidate who polled the second highest number of votes in the election.

A Legislative Council bills committee discussed Tuesday the 2012 Chief Executive and the LegCo electoral methods after the passage of the constitutional reform package in June last year.

Lawmaker Wong Kwok-hing, from the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, highlighted the fact that nominees for the five new LegCo seats will be selected by the elected District Council members and submitted to the three million registered voters of Hong Kong for election.

He linked the arrangement to the so-called "referendum" triggered by the resignations of five opposition lawmakers in five geographical constituencies last year. "Only if one, let alone five, resigns for any reason this time, it will trigger a by-election tantamount to a referendum involving the entire electorate. The government must deal with this," he said.

Lawmakers Priscilla Leung from the Professional Forum and the Liberal Party's Miriam Lau concurred, saying that many citizens were deeply dissatisfied over the resignations of the five opposition members and the staggering HK$159 million cost for staging the subsequent by-election.

"People feel that if the same lawmakers run for the by-election after quitting their seats, they are merely playing their own games," Lau commented.

The Democratic Party's Lee Wing-tat disputed that view, saying that people had their voters' mandate when they were elected.

If they won a by-election later, it meant they obtained a renewed mandate from the voters, he said.

He also asked Lam to clarify the use of the term "loophole".

Lam responded that voters chose candidates in LegCo elections, hoping they will serve the people for a four-year term.

"If they quit half way, they fall short of the voters' expectation and let them down.

"Citizens do not recognize their action and the use of huge public money to run by-elections, but the government has a duty to fill the vacant seats," he said.

Lam added the government would submit a proposal to deal with the problem after the passage of relevant electoral laws.

China Daily

(HK Edition 01/05/2011 page1)