Pro-Beijing lawmaker Regina Ip said she is considering withdrawing a motion to condemn legislator Ted Hui over a phone-snatching incident which prompted his arrest on Saturday.
Hui snatched the phone of a executive officer – who was tasked with keeping track of lawmakers’ whereabouts – during a Legislative Council meeting last month. He took it to a men’s bathroom to check the data collected.
Following the incident, Hui’s Democratic Party membership was indefinitely suspended. Chief Executive Carrie Lam criticised his actions as “barbaric,” and on Saturday, he was arrested for dishonest use of a computer, common assault, criminal destruction and obstruction of a public officer.
Hui was released on HK$8,000 bail. In an interview with RTHK, he said: “I will attend all the Legislative Council meetings as usual, as well as district events and District Council meetings – I will not be absent. For one, I believe this is the most basic duty of a councillor, and also, I wish to show the public that I will not let them down.”
Pro-Beijing lawmaker Regina Ip had intended to move a motion to censure Hui, which could result in him being removed from the Legislative Council if two-thirds of lawmakers support his disqualification following an investigation. The House Committee debated the motion last Friday.
But Ip said that, after Hui’s arrest, she is considering withdrawing the motion if the police will be launching an investigation and judicial proceedings are set to begin.
“But because the motion is not signed by just me, but four [lawmakers] in total – this is a joint action by the pro-establishment camp – I have to first discuss with them. There is no decision yet.”
