HONG KONG, Apr 6 (AFP): Hong Kong will ask Beijing to step in and avert a looming "constitutional crisis" over the tenure of its next chief executive, the city's caretaker leader said Wednesday, triggering an angry response from pro-democracy lawmakers in the Chinese enclave. Donald Tsang said the government would request the State Council, or China's cabinet, intervenes after activists threatened to derail the selection process for a new chief executive, sparked by the mid-term resignation of former leader Tung Chee-hwa last month. "After thorough and careful consideration we have decided to submit a report to make the request," Tsang told legislators. Tsang, who is favourite to succeed Tung, said the move was vital because the legal challenges could paralyse the administration. "If the government fails to elect a new chief in time and lawfully, it would affect major government policies and the governance of Hong Kong and it may even see a constitutional crisis," he said. "This is lawful and constitutional in order to remove uncertainty in the government ... we must elect a new chief executive in time," he said.
|