Two more bureaucrats join management at Hong Kong’s RTHK amid government-mandated editorial overhaul
- Former director of administration Kitty Choi Kit-yu, and ex-assistant secretary for labour and welfare Freda Cheung Yun-chee joined the beleaguered public broadcaster this month
- ‘I’m not sure why the government wants to appoint more bureaucrats to RTHK,’ says one employee. ‘Not sure if it’s good for RTHK’s development to have outsiders leading the professionals.’
More Hong Kong bureaucrats are parachuting into the ranks of RTHK’s management to assist its new head in bringing the controversy-plagued public broadcaster in line following a barrage of complaints from the city’s pro-establishment camp.
The government announced on Monday that former director of administration Kitty Choi Kit-yu, and ex-assistant secretary for labour and welfare Freda Cheung Yun-chee had joined RTHK this month – Choi as an adviser to newly appointed director of broadcasting Patrick Li Pak-chuen, and Cheung as senior manager for special support.
An RTHK spokeswoman said Choi’s part-time position would be short-term, and her main duty would be to provide advice on the implementation of a recent government report on RTHK’s editorial management and its mechanism for handling complaints.
The report, compiled by a team of civil servants and released in February, called for an overhaul of the broadcaster’s management, editorial operations and work culture, saying RTHK lacked editorial accountability and transparency in handling complaints, and was not fulfilling its charter as a government department.
The spokeswoman added that the station would also create several other positions to help implement recommendations contained in the report.
Choi, who retired from public service in April 2019, first joined the government in 1986 and had served in various capacities, including in the former Transport Bureau and the Chief Secretary’s Office.
