The Department of Justice on Tuesday filed an urgent request with the High Court for judicial review of Legislative Council President Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen's decision to let two lawmakers-elect who failed to complete their swearing-in according to the relevant laws and standing LegCo rules go through the process a second time. With the two having blatantly breached the ordinance covering the oath declaration, their qualifications as a lawmaker in the SAR have been widely questioned. The government was rightly concerned about the legality and consequences of allowing them to be sworn in. It was therefore justified in consulting the High Court.

Many Hong Kong residents have voiced their indignation toward these unworthy politicians who lied about their true intent when they signed a pledge to respect and follow the Basic Law as well as other laws in order to enter the LegCo election in September, for they immediately revealed their true colors after winning a LegCo seat. Hundreds of thousands of people have signed an online petition demanding their disqualification as lawmakers and their apology for betraying public trust in Hong Kong and the Chinese nation as a whole. Numerous people of Chinese descent around the world have publicly expressed their anger too, including 152 organizations representing UK residents of Chinese descent. They all urged relevant authorities in Hong Kong to strip the duo of their status as elected lawmakers in the best interests of Hong Kong society and the Chinese nation.

As a result of the public uproar, on Wednesday morning pro-establishment members of LegCo walked out en masse in protest as the LegCo president tried to administer a repeat of the swearing-in by these unruly lawmakers-elect. The walk-out led to the swearing-in process being aborted for lack of a quorum. As expected, the opposition lawmakers seized the opportunity to accuse the pro-establishment camp of emulating their own habitual tactics of disruption. They insulted the wisdom of the general public. What the pro-establishment lawmakers did was to defend the rule of law and uphold national dignity, rather than to delay the passage of crucial bills as the opposition lawmakers have been fond of doing over the years.

The rule of law is a vital pillar and safeguard of Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. It is every local resident's right and responsibility to fight against illegal acts and attempts to whitewash deliberate violation of existing law by unscrupulous politicians. It is also their right to support the SAR government in upholding national sovereignty and dignity.

(HK Edition 10/20/2016 page8)