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Elected members of the Urban Council who served on the Legislative or Executive Councils in the past seem to me to have acted no differently from appointed members and were in most cases a lot less outspoken and effective than some of their appointed colleagues.
Cooperation Not Confrontation
The experience of the past suggests that Hong Kong citizens once elevated to prestigious positions in the government by whatever means, soon see their principal function as maintaining the stability and effeciency of the government and generally supporting the civil servants they rub shoulders with and depend on for information and hopefully for honours. Nor do I think that the general public would necessarily see such conduct on their part as inappropriate. The political instincts of Hong Kong society are deeply rooted in the Confucian tradition and it favours the security of authoritarian government and the resolution of conflict by compromise rather than confrontation. People do not really believe that politicians will selflessly crusade for the community, but hope that in furthering their own interests behind the scenes they will do a bit, along the way, to help the rest of the community.
Political Leaders
Courageous and outspoken critics of government (especially of corrupt government) have always commanded a special place in the hearts of Chinese people. But in choosing political leaders I believe the preference is for the clever, cautious and successful rather than the quixotic. According to the confucian Analects when Tsu-lu asked Confucius. "if you had the conduct of the armies of a great state whom would you have to act with you?" The Master replied "I would not have him to act
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with me who will attack a tiger with his bare hands, or cross a river without a boat, dying without regret. My associate must be the man who proceeds to action fearful of failure, who is fond of adjusting his plans and is capable of successfully executing them'' (Analects Book 7 Chapter 10).
More of the Same
My prediction is that whilst the coming elections may throw up a few firebrands to enliven the proceedings the re-vamped legislature is unlikely to make government performance significantly more representative or ensure that government is more accountable to the people of Hong Kong. Senior civil servants will continue to dominate policy formulation and the legislature will approve the legislation and supply the funds needed to implement what civil servants think is good for the people. And as we more closer to the time when these senior civil servants are appointed by Peking and Legislative Councillors are more exposed to pressures from the United Front, so will the conduct of government tend to be more influenced by Peking opinion and less by Hong Kong opinion.
UMELCO is likely to remain unified in its support of strong and stable government, subordinating internal differences in the interests of an appearance of unity as it has always done. Government will continue to be a closed and firendly coalition of unofficials and civil servants carrying out a "concensus" style of government much favoured by Miss Lydia Dunn.
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