Retiring Legislative Council (LegCo) Secretary-General Pauline Ng predicts that Wednesday's plenary meetings are likely to take much longer time with 10 new members this legislative session. She predicts the regular weekly meetings soon will extend into Thursday mornings.

At Monday's tea gathering with the press, Ng said as she prepares to leave office, she has been striving for additional resources to meet with more supporting staff, and a rising in budget to cover the increase in electricity tariff.

During her tenure, Ng saw the emergence of radical confrontation in the chamber. She recalled opposition lawmakers throwing bananas and floating balloons in the chamber.

The first time maverick lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung (Long Hair) let loose a balloon in the chamber, and the staff couldn't get the balloon down. "We paid HK$1,000 to the contractor to have the balloon removed from the ceiling of the chamber on the first occasion."

"On the second occassion, since the balloon flew to an awkward position, it was more difficult (to get it down) and we paid HK$10,000 to have it removed," she said. "We had him pay for the costs and he said it was really expensive."

Ng also said it was her responsibility to act quickly to restore order of meetings during protests.

"The security guards always look at me as to whether to take action," she explained. "In the past, security guards acted quickly in the hope of restoring order as soon as possible, but they sometimes gave the impression of being too rude."

She disclosed she had talked to those lawmakers in private. "I told them I could allow them a little bit more time to shout and protest. But once I step forward, they should stop and they should not advance anymore," she said.

Ng will retire at the end of the month, after 22 years' service with the legislature, including four years in her present post. Throughout the years, she has witnessed the democratization movement, including the first direct election in 1991 and an independent Legislative Council Secretariat from the government in 1994.

During her tenure as secretary-general, Ng has fostered a good understanding and mutual respect with the lawmakers. Offering some parting advice to her successor Kenneth Chen - who was former undersecretary for education - she said she hoped Chen will be politically-neutral and strive to understand as far as possible the feelings of the lawmakers in order to maintain a better working relation.

After leaving the job, Ng said she would first enjoy her post-retirement holidays beginning in October. At the start of 2013, she will start writing a book on history and precedents of the Legislative Council, given her deep experience and knowledge of the legislature at work.

Tentatively, the book will comprise 20 topics, such as the oath-taking (including the origin, wording, format and legal challenges encountered) and declaration of interest by lawmakers. Former LegCo legal advisor Jonathan Daw and several retired assistant secretary-generals will assist her.

joseph@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 09/18/2012 page1)