'CE turning help for Hongkongers to political tool'

'CE turning help for Hongkongers to political tool'

The Chief Executive, Carrie Lam, has been accused of turning the coronavirus outbreak into a political campaign to shore up support for a pro-Beijing ally.



The government has asked the Federation of Trade Unions (FTU) to help Hong Kong people courier medications to their relatives stranded on the mainland. The postage is paid by the administration.



Democratic Party lawmaker James To questioned if the CE was trying to help FTU garner support for the upcoming Legislative Council election.



He said he also helped some Hong Kong residents post medications to several provinces on the mainland. He said the postage cost between HK$150 and HK210 but he didn’t get any subsidy from the government.



In a Facebook post, Carrie Lam said the FTU had helped about 1,200 people deliver medications in the past two weeks.



She posted a video that shows her taking phone calls at a hotline centre set up by the FTU.



“Hello, I’m the Chief Executive. You’re in Hubei? Tell me the situation. Which city are you in? We’re bringing Hong Kong people home in batches. Please be patient. We’re arrange more charter flights as soon as possible,” she was heard saying in the video.



The government has brought home 469 Hong Kong residents from the Hubei province in the past two days, but thousands are still at stranded at the epicentre of the Covid-19 outbreak.