Leung must give straight answers before basement becomes a bunker

The long-awaited reply late last month from Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying over the saga of his trellis has led to more questions than answers.

Apart from highlighting his "bad memory" by mixing up which trellis was at which of his two conjoined houses on The Peak, Leung has drawn attention to another illegal structure - an unauthorised extension of 320 square feet in his basement, used as a storage area

Leung said he had only discovered the room was unauthorised when he was about to declare his bid for the chief executive race. As you may recall, during the campaign, Leung was quick to attack his rival Henry Tang Ying-yen over Tang's own illegal basement. When media asked Leung about any illegal structures of his own, he failed to mention any.

In June the Buildings Department inspected Leung's home and came across a brick wall in the basement that did not match the original plans. Inspectors asked for more information, but Leung waited five months to reply. With his "bad memory", perhaps the chief executive has already forgotten the pledge of an "open and candid" leadership he has repeatedly made since taking office in July.

The whole government appears on the brink of an integrity crisis, with politicians looking at a motion of no confidence.

As political analysts have noted, the 14-page written explanation Leung's office issued to the public on Friday is loaded with technical details and does little to dispel the suspicion that the chief executive has not been honest. Giving straight answers to the public is the only way Leung can maintain the authority to govern. If he is wrong about a relatively harmless trellis, one wonders how forthright he will be with the public about Beijing's intentions for Hong Kong.