DAB Says Election Committee Is Representative

The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) on Monday dismissed suggestions that the Election Committee is not representative enough, saying that it's inclusive and members convey different views in society.

"I think everyone who can get in is a patriot... Regarding the policy initiatives or policy suggestions, even within the 1,500 members of this committee, we may have different views. Therefore I think this is inclusive in this regard," DAB chairwoman Starry Lee said.

"We allow people to have constructive views to improve the policy implementation of the administration."

The DAB also criticised the delay in vote counting in Sunday's election, calling it unacceptable.

It urged election authorities to fix the problems as soon as possible, with voter turnout expected to be larger in the Legco election in December.

The Federation of Trade Unions, which won 76 seats in the election, also said the authorities should make sure similar problems won't occur again in the Legco polls.

“They have to review the whole process how to eliminate any complex procedures and how to enhance the efficiency,” FTU vice president Alice Mak said.

“I’m going to raise this in the coming Legco meeting. I hope we can come up with some solutions to increase the efficiency of the counting process in the coming Legco election.”

The DAB won more than 150 seats on the 1,500-strong Election Committee, and Lee said her party would consider nominating its own members in the upcoming Legco election before considering those from other camps.

"We will look into every candidate if they ask us for nomination," she said.

"First and foremost we will make sure that they are qualified as a patriot. The second thing is we will assess their past actions and behaviours to see whether or not they are in line with our platform."

______________________________