Lee in spotlight over role as DAB chair after being named NPC delegate
Staff reporter
The chairwoman of Hong Kong's largest pro-Beijing party Starry Lee Wai-king will be in the spotlight of the party's committee election next month to see whether she will step down from ...
The chairwoman of Hong Kong's largest pro-Beijing party Starry Lee Wai-king will be in the spotlight of the party's committee election next month to see whether she will step down from the leadership role after becoming the city's sole delegate in the National People's Congress Standing Committee.
The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong will elect its new leadership next month and members can apply to compete for about 54 seats in its central committee in a week.
The 48-year-old Lee succeeded veteran politician Tam Yiu-chung - also from the DAB - to become the youngest Hong Kong delegate in the NPC Standing Committee in March after obtaining 2,901 votes from the Chinese parliament.
Lee also became the first woman to be elected as the DAB head in 2015.
Some party members believed it will be revealed soon whether Lee will continue as the chairwoman of the party, as the party head usually will not join the central committee election.
Earlier this month, Lee, who is also a lawmaker and chairwoman of the house committee, announced that she will not seek for re-election for her Kowloon City district councillor role after she has served the district council for over 20 years.
Lee has also said that as a new NPC Standing Committee member, she will prioritize the country's affairs.
As views on the central government could to some extent be reflected in the public remarks made by the NPC Standing Committee delegate, it is believed that Lee may step down from the DAB's party head position to focus on works related to the country.
However, some party members support Lee in continuing to head the party, with other members potentially helping her in her party duties.
If she steps down, it is believed that DAB vice-chairman Gary Chan Hak-kan may take up the position.
In an earlier interview, Chan said the DAB has to be upgraded and become a party for governance.