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The Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, issued the following statement today (January 26) on the resignation of five Legislative Council members:
The HKSAR Government deeply regrets that five Legislative Council members from the League of Social Democrats and the Civic Party tendered their resignations to the Legislative Council Secretariat today to pursue a so-called "referendum campaign in the five geographical constituencies" through by-elections.
The mainstream public opinion has reservations about this move. Many see it as an abuse of the by-election mechanism and a waste of public resources. Despite calls for halting the plan, the Legislative Council members concerned have insisted to go astray. This would let many people down.
In fact, legislators should discharge their constitutional duties in the legislature with dedication. They should not resign lightly.
We reiterate that the so-called "referendum" is inconsistent with the Basic Law. It has no legal basis or legal effect, and the Government will not recognise it. The general public does not want to see any unnecessarily provocative statements which might lead to divisions in our society and intensify social conflicts.
Consultation on the methods for selecting the Chief Executive and for forming the Legislative Council in 2012 is under way. Unnecessary resignations will not help our community forge consensus on constitutional development.
As the Chief Executive, I would not want to see what has happened today. The Government, however, has the responsibility to act in accordance with the law and hold by-elections following the relevant legislation. We will inform the Legislative Council later of the detailed arrangements for holding the by-elections.
Ends/Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Issued at HKT 19:43
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