Hong Kong Financial Secretary John Tsang (曾俊華) quit yesterday, in what is widely seen as a prelude to a leadership bid for the territory’s top job.
Tsang said he submitted his resignation to Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying (梁振英), who on Friday unexpectedly announced that he would not seek a second term in office.
Rumors and speculation have been swirling for months that Tsang would step down and put himself forward as a candidate to replace the deeply unpopular Leung, whose five-year term ends in June next year.
Photo: AFP
Tsang said he was not ready to confirm whether he was interested in the job.
“Whether I will run or not is a serious and solemn matter,” he said. “I shall think through this in the coming days and make an announcement once ready.”
Tsang, 65, has been dubbed “Mr Pringles” because his mustache reminds many Hong Kongers of the potato chip brand’s mascot.
Educated in the US, Tsang has been the finance secretary since 2007. He is Hong Kong’s second-most popular public official, with an approval rating of 62 percent, according to a survey last month by Hong Kong University pollsters.
Leung was last, with a 71 percent disapproval rating. About 1,000 people were polled for the survey, which had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
Leung, who cited family reasons for not continuing in the job, is widely reviled for his hardline stance against pro-democracy campaigners and lawmakers and because he is suspected of having deep ties to Chinese Communist Party leaders.
Tsang has a more easygoing public persona.
Hong Kong leaders are chosen by a 1,200-member panel of mostly pro-Beijing tycoons and elites, which is scheduled to make its pick in March.
So far, one person, retired judge Woo Kwok-hing (胡國興), has publicly declared his intention to run for the job.
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