Timothy Kwai Ting-Kong, a member of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies and of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), yesterday complained with the Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC), Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and police respectively, accusing Benny Tai Yiu-ting, an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Hong Kong, of allegedly perverting the course of justice and committing a corrupt conduct at elections, and demanding an investigation and deprival Tai of his Election Committee membership.
The complaint is based on the following facts. In the election of the Election Committee, the opposition camp gained 325 seats, with Tai winning out under the higher education sector. Days ago, he proposed that that opposition members on the Election Committee should all cast their votes to a chief executive candidate who would promise to scrap a judicial review sought by the government to disqualify Lau Siu-lai, Edward Yiu Chung-yim, Nathan Law Kwun-chung and Leung Kwok-hung as legislators, so as to increase his/her chance of winning out as next CE.
Tai's proposal immediately created a public uproar. The "Black Hand" starting Occupy Central some time ago now has stretched so far as to manipulate the CE election and to touch the "red line" of "one country two systems" and the Basic Law interpretation by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC). He could be said audacious and savage in the extreme.
In fact, such a proposal for "vote trading" by Tai at least in three respects touches the bottom line of the constitutional system and the rule of law, possibly constituting a criminal offence. It is not by any means just some general argument.
Firstly, a legislator-elect must completely, accurately, seriously and sincerely read the whole of the Oath as required by the law upon taking office. Otherwise, those who have yet to take office cannot do so, and those who have taken office must leave. This is a decision made by the NPC Standing Committee in its Basic Law interpretation earlier. The High Court in the SAR has already set the case with Sixtus Leung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-ching. Therefore, in this regard there is no room for controversy legally and judicially.
In Hong Kong, when a case is in the course of a judicial proceeding, relevant persons must not contact or attempt to influence witnesses and the media must not openly discuss the case. Now Tai has gone so far as to propose to trade votes for scraping the judicial review against Lau Siu-lai and the other three. This is obviously an attempt to pervert the course of justice and commits contempt of court in action. How can the judicial authority allow this to go unchecked and not deal with it?
Secondly, by proposing to use votes to "strike a deal", Tai apparently use political and public pressures to press on the over 300 opposition members on the Election Committee, binding them to such a political deal as to "trade votes for scraping the lawsuit". In this way they are not allowed to cast their votes at their own wills but have to vote as ordered by Tai. What else is it if this is not an overt corrupt conduct at elections? How could the Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC) turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to this?
Thirdly, according to the Basic Law, the CE must pledge allegiance to the Central People's Government and the Hong Kong SAR, be responsible for implementing and executing the Basic Law. A Basic Law interpretation made by the NPC Standing Committee is equivalent to the Basic Law in effect. So how could a CE candidate possible defy the law and consciously go against the law to deny the Basic Law interpretation by the NPC Standing Committee in exchange for votes?
Even if there is some CE candidate who indeed harbours such silly thought, in case he or she wins out in the election, the Central Government cannot possibly make the appointment. Therefore, any of the CE candidates not only should not be cheated or scared by such a "deal" but must step forward bravely to complain to the EAC and ICAC for being threatened and intimidated and demand to prohibit the spread of such talks.
With all such "three offences", the Election Committee membership of such a "Black Hand of Law" as Tai becomes highly doubtful. It is an urgent priority to deprive him of his membership on the Election Committee. Absolutely he must no longer be allowed to oppose the CE election in accordance with the law in the name of a member on the Election Committee. The court and ICAC must also launch an investigation in accordance with the law into his suspected perverting the course of justice and committing a corrupt conduct at elections.
29 December 2016
