Henry Tang
| The Honourable Henry Tang Ying-yen 唐英年 GBM, GBS, JP |
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| 4th Chief Secretary for Administration | |
| In office 1 July 2007 – 28 September 2011 |
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| Chief Executive | Donald Tsang |
| Preceded by | Rafael Hui |
| Succeeded by | Stephen Lam |
| 3rd Financial Secretary | |
| In office 5 August 2003 – 30 June 2007 |
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| Tung Chee-hwa Donald Tsang |
Chief Executive |
| Preceded by | Antony Leung |
| Succeeded by | John Tsang |
| Chief Executive of Hong Kong | |
| In office 25 May 2005 – 24 June 2005 (acting) |
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| Preceded by | Donald Tsang (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Donald Tsang |
| 1st Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology | |
| In office 1 July 2002 – 3 August 2003 |
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| Tung Chee-hwa | Chief Executive |
| Succeeded by | John Tsang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 September 1952  Hong Kong |
| Nationality |  Hong Kong |
| Spouse(s) | Kwok Yu-chin |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan (BA) |
Henry Tang Ying-yen, GBM, GBS, JP (Chinese: 唐英年; pinyin: Táng Yīngnián; born 1952) was the Chief Secretary for Administration of Hong Kong until his resignation in September 2011. He is a candidate in the Hong Kong Chief Executive election of 2012, and believed to be preferred by Beijing.
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[edit] Personal and education
Tang holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Michigan.[1] He is a graduate of class of 1975.[2] He attended Graduate School at Yale University. He is married with four children, three daughters and a son.
Tang has extensive ties with PRC leaders. His father Tang Hsiang Chien is a former standing committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the advisory body to the National People's Congress.[3]
[edit] Career
Tang was named Global Leader for Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum in 1993 and won the Young Industrialist of Hong Kong award in 1989.[1]
Between 1995 and 2001 he served as the Chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries.[1] He was also a Committee Member of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and a Steward of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.[1] He was also the Chairman of the Provisional Construction Industry Co-ordination Board (PCICB) before joining the government.[4]
Tang has been a member of the Executive Council since the transfer of sovereignty of HK in 1997.[5] He served as a member of the Legislative Council for seven years from 1991 to 1998.[5] He was a member of the Liberal Party, a pro-businessmen and pro-Beijing party, before joining the government.
Tang has also served extensively on various government boards and public bodies, including the Trade Development Council, Town Planning Board, University Grants Committee, and Council of the City University of Hong Kong.[5]
Tang took up his commerce post in July 2002 as part of a line-up of new secretaries aimed at improving the government's transparency. He was promoted from Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology to Finance Secretary on 4 August 2003 replacing Antony Leung. Leung resigned on 16 July 2003 due to allegations of tax evasion in regards to his new car. Tang briefly served from 25 May to 21 June 2005 as acting Chief Executive after Tung Chee Hwa, the former Chief Executive who resigned citing health reasons.
On 25 May 2005, Donald Tsang, the Chief Secretary for Administration, resigned to stand in the 'by-election' for Chief Executive. Tang served as Acting Chief Executive of HKSAR soon after Tsang's resignation was announced.
On 23 June 2007, it was announced that Tang would succeed Rafael Hui as the new Chief Secretary for Administration of Hong Kong effective 1 July 2007.[5]
[edit] Hong Kong Chief Executive election, 2012
On 28 September 2011, in a widely trailed move, Tang resigned from his post, and then in late November announced his candidacy for Chief Executive.[6] He is believed to be preferred by Beijing, and hence many financial heavyweights quickly showed their support for Tang's candidacy, including Former Monetary Authority chief Joseph Yam Chi-kwong, HSBC Asia-Pacific chief executive Peter Wong Tung-shun, and Father of Lan Kwai Fong, Allan Zeman. However in polls around the time of his announcement and for some time afterwards, his main opponent, CY Leung, was leading in public polls.
[edit] Controversy
[edit] Harbourfest case
Tang was involved in the Harbour Fest controversy as Chairman of the Economic Relaunch Strategy Group responsible for pushing ahead with the plan to spend $100 million to revive the economy after SARS, and said that he should be held responsible. Tang had said that although Mike Rowse, a senior civil servant, had actually signed the contract, Rowse as such was not required to be held politically responsible.[7] However, during a Working Group meeting on 31 October, 2003 and during an independent inquiry in May 2004, Tang allegedly said Rowse had not acted improperly and that there had been no irregularity in the implementation of the event.[8] Tang had also said that all parties had under-estimated the complexity of the event and may have been too ambitious in organising it in such a short timespan. He later withdrew the remark: just before a government inquiry opened on November 2004, Tang requested the ERWG minutes be deleted.[8] Internal governmental disciplinary process fined Rowse for misconduct, but a High Court judge quashed the government ruling on 4 July 2008. Political commentator Frank Ching pointed to the huge credibility gap of the government. He noted that the attempt of Tang to shift political responsibility from himself, as the minister responsible, to a senior civil servant, was a travesty of justice for Rowse, and went against the Accountability System.[9]
[edit] 2010 shoeing incident
On 6 March 2010 Tang attended a Youth Summit in Chai Wan organized by the Home Affairs Bureau. A 31-year-old jobless man threw a shoe at Tang and it landed on the stage metres away from him. The man was dragged away by police. The man said he was unemployed after getting fired by a computer company, and the government policies were not helping him. He said he was not a "post-80s" teen, but supported the highspeed rail protest connecting HK to Guangdong.[10] A protester said that the topics discussed in the summit are not those that any young person would be interested in.[11]
[edit] 2011 car crash comment and protest
On 15 January 2011 Tang attended a Roundtable Institute and gave a speech that targeted the Hong Kong post-80s generation with some controversial comments.[12][13] He said the young generations need to take responsibilities, and he cautioned them for slamming others because of opposing views. Then he stressed the need to compromise and simplify complicated issues. He further said young people should not close the door and act like emperors.[14] That he doesn't want to see politics lead to a bloodshed, leading to a road of no return and end up like a fatal car crash.[13]
On 21 January Leung Kwok-hung led a group of protesters to a public forum with a toy model car. He then smashed the car in front of Henry Tang to represent a fatal car crash.[15] On 30 January, 2011 eight youth groups including Hong Kong Federation of Students marched to New World Development, Li Ka Shing's Cheung Kong Holdings in Central and accused the government of colluding with businesses in maximising profits while squeezing the poor.[16] The students criticised Tang and the government for policies that benefit the upper class only like no real estate tax duty, reduction of wine and profit tax. The students said the whole HK is at the mercy of real estate developers.[16]
[edit] Extra-marital affair
On 4 October 2011, in the midst of rumours about his extra-marital affair, Henry Tang issued a statement, in which he admitted that he had made a mistake in his romantic life in the past and he deeply regretted it. He said that his wife had forgiven him. His wife said in the statement that there had been difficult times in their relationship and that he has faults, but that she also appreciated his strengths. She acknowledged him as her 'best partner'.[17]National People's Congress Standing Committee member Rita Fan said on 7 October 2011 that she didn't know about Mr Tang's now widely publicised infidelity when she offered her support and she refused to rule herself out of standing in the following year's Chief Executive election, though she did not in fact stand.[18]
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Cityu.edu.hk. "cityu.edu.hk." Henry Tang. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ University of Michigan Alumni Association, Alumni Spotlight http://alumni.umich.edu/node/807
- ^ Sina.com.cn. "Sina.com.cn." 唐英年之父、半島針織董事長唐翔千. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ Devb.gov.hk. "Devb.gov.hk." Statement by PCICB chairman. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ a b c d Gov.hk. "Gov.hk." Mr Henry Tang Ying-yen. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Cannix Yau (31 October 2003). "Leung 'not to blame for Fest contracts'". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=&art_id=30713&sid=&con_type=1&d_str=20031031&sear_year=2003.
- ^ a b Nishika Patel, Rowse seeks to have music fest verdict quashed, The Standard, 26 February 2008
- ^ Frank Ching (15 July 2008). Credibility gap. South China Morning Post.
- ^ The Standard HK. "The Standard.com." Assault rap aimed at shoe thrower. Retrieved on 2010-03-07.
- ^ South China Morning Post."SCMP." Shoes thrown at Tang at youth summit. Retrieved on 2010-03-07.
- ^ The Standard HK."The Standard.com." Tang's calculated hardened stance. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ a b Metrohk.com.hk. "Metrohk.com.hk." 葉劉批唐挑釁. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ Sina.com. "Sina.com." 唐英年訓80後：社運針對官商 不分青紅皂白. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ 881903.com. "881903.com." 唐英年指清拆菜園村合法合情合理. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ a b South China Morning Post. "SCMP." Article. Retrieved on 2010-01-30.
- ^ (traditional Chinese (HK))唐英年承認過去感情有缺失 Sina.com.hk. 4 October 2011.
- ^ Rita Fan won't rule out CE bid Radio Television Hong Kong. 07 October 2011.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Chau Tak-hay as Secretary for Commerce and Industry |
Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology 2002–2004 |
Succeeded by John Tsang |
| Preceded by Carrie Yau as Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting |
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| Preceded by Antony Leung |
Financial Secretary of Hong Kong 2003–2007 |
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| Preceded by Donald Tsang Acting |
Chief Executive of Hong Kong Acting 25 May 2005 – 24 June 2005 |
Succeeded by Donald Tsang |
| Preceded by Rafael Hui |
Chief Secretary for Administration 2007–2011 |
Succeeded by Stephen Lam |
| Legislative Council of Hong Kong | ||
| New seat | Member of Legislative Council Representative for Import and Export constituency 1995–1997 |
Replaced by Provisional Legislative Council |
| Order of precedence | ||
| Preceded by Chan Sui-kau Recipient of the Grand Bauhinia Medal |
Hong Kong order of precedence Recipient of the Grand Bauhinia Medal |
Succeeded by Hari Harilela Recipient of the Grand Bauhinia Medal |
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