Chief Executive-designate (CE) Donald Tsang vowed to devote himself to serving the public in the coming two years.

Making the pledge at a public forum yesterday, Tsang told citizens that his priorities during his term as the new CE will be to improve governance, building a harmonious society and enhancing Hong Kong's economic strengths, along with a revamp of the Executive Council (ExCo).

Tsang revealed that he will meet members of the community in the next few months to consult their views on his objectives and will give more details of his plans in his first Policy Address in October.

He said public sentiment in the territory has been improving as the local economy has begun to regain vitality, adding that the community should be forward looking.

Responding to questions of tax cuts, Tsang said the economy is expected to grow 4 to 5 per cent this year, which could enable the government to implement tax-relief measures.

When asked about legislation for Article 23, Tsang said the issue is important and will be the responsibility of every CE.

But Tsang said his tenure as CE is probably too short to re-launch the issue.

He stressed that while universal suffrage is the ultimate goal, Hong Kong must discuss the issue in a rational manner, and it is critical to have the backing of the central government.

Meanwhile, Tsang Hin-chi, a Standing Committee member of the National People's Congress, said the new CE will probably be re-elected as CE again in 2007 if he performs well in the next two years.

Tsang Hin-chi said the CE designate's victory was what the public had expected, adding that he would be able to gain Bejing's trust and support from the people of Hong Kong during his two years in office.

Tsang must be decisive, caring

Chief Executive-elect (CE) Donald Tsang needs to demonstrate a strong character whenever necessary in pushing forward government policies but he should also accommodate different opinions, according to Eden Woon, chief executive officer of Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.

But once he has taken stock of views from across the board, he must be decisive and implement his decisions without hesitation, Woon said.

"It takes him a good deal of political skills to implement government policies," Woon told China Daily in an exclusive interview. "However, he should not demonstrate a strong character all the time. He should know when to be strong and when to respond to suggestions at the appropriate time because Hong Kong people do not accept a strong-handed style of leadership."

Speaking on the day Tsang was declared the winner of the CE by-election uncontested, Woon said former CE Tung Chee-hwa had done a lot to integrate with the mainland economy.

"In the short term of three to five years, Hong Kong's economy will be fine, save any fluctuations in the external environment. But in order to enhance Hong Kong's competitive edge in the long run, Hong Kong must not stand still, as Singapore, Shenzhen and Macao are all moving forward very fast."

In his opinion, Hong Kong needs to revamp its education system to raise the quality of the university graduates and their proficiency in English. Greater efforts should be made to improve the air quality in Hong Kong because air pollution has already scared a great many foreign investors.

The government should also review the civil service structure and control public expenditure. Since the tax base in Hong Kong is very narrow, it should continue consulting the public on the introduction of goods and services tax and should not give up just because of dissenting voices.

He further said Hong Kong should not be complacent with its simple and low-tax regime and do nothing. If there is room for a tax reduction, the government should cut the corporate tax to attract more foreign businessmen to invest in Hong Kong, particularly when Macao is working hard to emerge as an offshore centre for investors. To deal with the aging population, the government should adopt an effective population policy to attract foreign and mainland talents to come to Hong Kong.

"The above-mentioned initiatives are what the Donald Tsang administration should take in the future. Mr Tung had attempted to do that but he did not achieve it because his governing and political skills, the method of policy implementation, communication with the people, and relations with the Legislative Council (LegCo) were not perfect.

"If Donald wants to achieve the above goals, he must first improve the governance problem. As the government will face strong opposition in the LegCo, he needs to improve relations and accommodate the views of the legislators so as to make them feel they are participating. Legislators have a right to put forward their views but they must be constructive ones. For example, the government should have consulted LegCo on the listing of the Housing Authority's Real Estate Investment Trust. But because of poor mutual relations, it bypassed the LegCo in the fear that it would oppose the plan."

He went on: "The government should deal with LegCo firmly if it feels it is doing the right things. If LegCo deliberately opposes good proposals, Hong Kong people are clever enough to tell what is right or wrong. Being a more decisive person, Donald possesses good political means. He must demonstrate his political means or he will encounter a lot of resistance to the long-term economic measures for Hong Kong."

He was aware that Tsang has, during the election period, agreed with the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions to consider making laws for minimum wages and maximum working hours. "These types of things always happen in elections like elections in the US. We are opposed to minimum wages and maximum working hours because they are against the rules of free market. We will wait and see if that can be done."

On the controversial West Kowloon Cultural District project, he felt that Hong Kong as Asia's world city, needs a world-class cultural hub of its own. However, the chamber takes no views on whether the government should go ahead with the single-tender development and the canopy as a major component of the project. "As a politician, he needs to balance the interests of all parties," Woon suggested.

(China Daily HK Edition June 20, 2005)