On the third day of a seminar at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Zhang Xiaoming – the former head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office and now a deputy there – said the basic law stated that district organizations should provide services on a district basis, rather than having much of a political function.

He said during the seminar, there were suggestions that the 117 district councilor seats in the 1,200-person committee which selects the city’s leader should be scraped.

Currently, 452 district councilors vote among themselves to fill the 117 seats in the election committee, which ultimately elect Hong Kong’s Chief Executive.

Zhang said not once he had heard the suggestion of canceling the seats throughout the seminar, with some saying even if the seats were not canceled, they should be drastically reduced.

He added that he will report back to Beijing regarding the suggestions.

Zhang also said the National People’s Congress has decided that the election committee, which currently picks the Chief Executive, would comprise 1,500 members, instead of 1,200. It would also be given new powers to nominate and select some lawmakers.

In addition, Legco will be expanded from 70 members to 90, with members being elected through direct polls, functional constituency elections, and the election committee.

Zhang said he had so far met over 1000 people from different sectors during the seminar, which shows that the central authorities are genuine in listening to views.