Legal sanctions 'possibly' brewing for Kwok

Opposition lawmaker Dennis Kwok Wing-hang could and should face legal consequence for filibustering and hindering the legislature, political heavyweights in Hong Kong said on Sunday, as the city's No 2 official censured Kwok in a strongly worded article.

Chief Secretary for Administration Matthew Cheung Kin-chung expressed "extreme indignation and disappointment" at the failure to elect a chairman of the Legislative Council's key organ, the House Committee, because of "irresponsible" filibustering by opposition lawmakers during the committee's 16 meetings over the past six months. Kwok was tasked to host the election.

In his latest blog post on Sunday, Cheung said some lawmakers were "obviously toying with procedures" with the view to paralyze the legislature and impede the work of the government.

Legislating is one of the many important constitutional obligations of LegCo under the Basic Law, Cheung said. A stalled House Committee has seriously impeded LegCo's operation and its constitutional function, he said.

This has resulted in the delays of many bills that relate to economic development and people's livelihoods from being scrutinized in the House Committee, Cheung said.

The holdup is undermining the city's overall benefits and hurting all Hong Kong residents, he added.

Cheung reiterated that only three months remain in the current LegCo term, and all bills will lapse after that, which would be a serious waste of public resources.

The city can't afford to have unending internal disputes, Cheung said, adding, "We must correct things, and resume normal operation of LegCo as soon as possible."

Lau Siu-kai, vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, a leading think tank on SAR affairs, said he believes Cheung's remarks could be paving the way for the government to take legal action against Kwok, such as possibly prosecuting him for misconduct in public office or breaking his oath of fullfilling his duties as a lawmaker.

He thought it's unlikely that Kwok will halt his behavior, as it would provoke criticism from his supporters.

There are many options for the government or the LegCo president to take to punish Kwok, as his misconduct was explicit, Lau said.

Tam Yiu-chung, a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the nation's top legislature, agreed with Lau, saying that the government should prosecute Kwok if there is enough evidence and legal basis to do so.