Press Releases

     The Kwai Tsing District Council Kwai Shing East Estate Constituency By-election is held today (September 6). The Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, this morning visited an ordinary polling station as well as a dedicated polling station for remanded persons or detainees who are registered electors of the constituency.

     Following is the transcript of Mr Lam's remarks to the media after his tour of an ordinary polling station located at the TWGHs Chen Zao Men College, at Kwai Hop Street, Kwai Chung:

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs : The by-election in Kwai Tsing District today is an important one. We have over 10,000 registered voters in this district. In the last few hours up to 11.30am, we have already had over 1,150 voters coming out to vote. The cumulative turnout rate is 11.41%. It is higher than the comparable rate (of 9.59%) for the same period during the 2007 District Council Elections. We would welcome and encourage all registered voters in this district to come out and cast their vote before 10.30pm today so that they can choose a candidate of their choice in this election.

     There are three candidates participating in this election. We believe that the competition in this particular by-election will be intense. Therefore, it is very important for all registered voters to come out and cast their vote today.

     (The following is a reply made also in English to a question asked in Cantonese.)

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs: With regard to the suggestion that certain members of the Legislative Council should resign so as to promote a heightened and more intense debate within the community on constitutional development and on the implementation of universal suffrage, I would like to say that actually, back in 2007, during the public consultations on the Green Paper on Constitutional Development, we have had very thorough discussions about the aspirations of this community with regard to the introduction of universal suffrage. The decision taken by Beijing in 2007 on the universal suffrage timetable has given us a very clear direction for promoting universal suffrage in Hong Kong - the Chief Executive may be returned by universal suffrage in 2017, and the Legislative Council in 2020. What we need to do now is to introduce further elements of democracy in our electoral methods for returning the Chief Executive in 2012 and for returning Members of the Legislative Council in that year. We need to consider various options for broadening the scope for political participation, e.g. increasing the number of seats in the legislature. It is constitutionally the responsibility of the Government to put forward a set of proposals. Constitutionally it is also the role of the Legislative Council to consider these proposals. It would be premature for members of the legislature to suggest that they would veto such a package even before it has been introduced. It would also be inappropriate for members of the legislature to impose the responsibility for a failure to gain passage of such a set of proposals on the part of the Chief Executive because both the Chief Executive and the legislature have responsibility constitutionally to propose and to consider such a package of measures for enhancing democracy in Hong Kong.

(Please also refer to Chinese transcript.)

Ends/Sunday, September 6, 2009

SCMA visits a polling station of Kwai Tsing DC by-election (1)

Photo shows the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, visiting the dedicated polling station for the Kwai Tsing District Council Kwai Shing East Estate Constituency by-election this morning (September 6). This dedicated polling station has been set up at the Kwai Chung Police Station at Kwai Chung Road for electors in the Kwai Shing East Estate Constituency who are remanded or detained by law enforcement agencies (other than the Correctional Services Department).

SCMA visits a polling station of Kwai Tsing DC by-election (2)

The Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, this morning (September 6) visited the polling station for the Kwai Tsing District Council Kwai Shing East Estate Constituency by-election set up at the TWGHs Chen Zao Men College at Kwai Hop Street, Kwai Chung. Photo shows Mr Lam chatting with an officer.