Community democracy: Land policy academic sets his sights on one of Hong Kong's district council seats
Newcomer Edward Yiu challenges four-time councillor Chu Ching-hong with his record of promoting environmental living in the district
With the Leung Chun-ying administration's massive housing development plans having caused much controversy in various districts, November's local polls may serve as a battleground for candidates to expound on their own thinking on neighbourhood planning.
One of those who is flagging city development in their electoral platform is housing and land policy academic Dr Edward Yiu Chung-yim, who is vowing to "leave his ivory tower and conduct a natural experiment" of democracy in urban planning. He is challenging incumbent Dr Chu Ching-hong, a four-term veteran who is now chairman of Southern District Council. Both are independents.
Yiu, 51, an associate professor at Chinese University, yesterday filed his candidacy for the Chi Fu constituency in Pok Fu Lam, where he has lived for 15 years.
As the convenor of the environmental committee of the resident association in his estate, he has been working with his neighbours and the property management company to introduce green initiatives there.
On the day of the interview, Yiu showed some of the estate's green facilities that he has helped introduce. Among them is an aquaponics pond - an environmentally friendly system where fish are bred and plants are grown. There are also solar panels and a power-generating stationary bicycle connected to a phone battery charger.
"Even if we failed to fight for democracy in the larger community, we can implement democracy in smaller communities," said Yiu, who gave open classes on Hong Kong's property market in the protest zone in Admiralty during last year's Occupy sit-ins.
He said two keys to encourage residents' involvement were to start with something fun and to make them feel the benefits of participation. For example, Chi Fu residents can accumulate points by participating in recycling and redeem vegetables grown on their community farm with the points.
The association also convinced flat owners to replace all lights in common areas and motors in pumping stations and lifts with environmentally friendly models, at a cost of HK$500,000 drawn from management fees and another HK$500,000 from a government fund.
"Within half a year, we saved HK$1 million in our electricity bill," Yiu explained.
Chu, 53, filed his candidacy last Friday and is seeking a fifth term. A resident of Chi Fu for over two decades, he served as the resident association's chairman from 1995 to 2005 and was a full-time musician before joining the district council in 2000.
He is currently a conductor of the Southern district orchestra and chairman of the Hong Kong Musician Association, alongside his council work.
"In fact Pok Fu Lam already had a perfect zoning plan in the 1980s. If the government just keeps the plan as it is and doesn't seek to insert developments here and there it will be very nice," he said, criticising the administration's housing plans for Chi Fu.
Citing the experience of chairing a tripartite committee involving the council, government departments and the MTR Corporation to plan the South Island Line, he said it was a good example of community participation in city planning.
"Instead of the Planning Department telling us which sites it will rezone for flat construction, I have always been advocating a bottom-up approach. The district council is most familiar with the district and we can identify suitable sites for government departments to conduct feasibility studies," Chu said.
Both candidates said they were dissatisfied with Leung's housing policy and were unlikely to support him for a second term if they had a vote in 2017.
