Li Ka-shing to vote for candidate trusted by central govt

Hong Kong’s richest man Li Ka-shing said on Wednesday he will vote for the candidate who is “trusted by and willing to cooperate with the central government” in the upcoming Chief Executive election on Sunday.

Although he did not mention a specific name, many believe former chief secretary for administration Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is the person who most fits Li’s requirements.

Li and his two sons are members of the city’s 1,194strong Election Committee — which will choose the city’s next leader on Sunday. He is regarded as the most influential figure in Hong Kong’s business sector.

Li did not nominate any particular candidate in the nomination period of the CE election.

This is also the first time the tycoon has discussed what he would like to see in a CE candidate.

Li, 88, was speaking as his two biggest companies — Cheung Kong Property Holdings and CK Hutchison Holdings — reported their first full-year earnings.

“Whoever is able to communicate and cooperate with the State well, and has the trust of the central government, I will vote for that person,” Li said.

He said electing such a person would help reduce social divisions. If the new CE is able to foster close cooperation with the central government, new prospects would be opened up shortly, Li explained.

“I love Hong Kong. I don’t want to see the place, we used to be proud of, having its GDP drop to only 2 percent of the nation’s,” he said.

Li said the SAR needed stability. “The next five years cannot repeat what has happened in the past five years. We hope there will be a new phase,” he added.

Meanwhile, he criticized the opposition camp for turning down electoral reform in 2014. If they had not done this, the city would have been able to elect a leader in a “one person, one vote” election.

“We had the chance to achieve universal suffrage,” Li said. “However, the chance was denied to us by some in society. But I do not see many people condemning those responsible for robbing us of this opportunity,” he noted.

On the same day, Carrie Lam attended a closed-door meeting with members of her campaign office and advisers. She thanked them for their work and support. Lam stressed she is confident of winning the election, according to local Chinese language media.

If elected, Lam said she would have talented people from across the political spectrum in her administration.

Also competing for the city’s top job are former financial secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and retired judge Woo Kwok-hing.

Whoever is able to communicate and cooperate with the State well, and has the trust of the central government, I will vote for that person” Li Ka-shing, chairman of the board for CK Hutchison Holdings