The chair of the Communications Authority Huen Wong has tendered his resignation for failing to declare his ownership of shares in telecom firm China Mobile.
Wong, who was appointed for a two-year term in April last year, admitted negligence and tendered his resignation last Friday.
“I must bear the responsibility for negligence,” he told reporters at his office on Monday.
He did not reveal how many shares he owned but said he should resign even for not declaring one share.
Wong said he tendered his resignation on the same day he found out about the shares. He made the discovery after selling a bundle of stocks which he had owned from two years prior to his appointment.
When asked to compare his resignation with other scandal-hit officials who have refused to resign, Wong said: “The way to handle this is my own personal choice – it is unrelated to how other people handle things, and I cannot comment on other people’s views.”
He said he believed the Communication Authority will continue to operate well with its “very good” team, as his resignation was accepted by Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Monday.
Wong, a former president of Law Society of Hong Kong, ran in the legal sector of the Legislative Council election in 2012 with support with several pro-Beijing figures. He received 1,970 votes and lost to Dennis Kwok with 2,528 votes.
The Communication Authority is an independent statutory body which manages telecommunication licensing and standards. It also advises the government on telecommunication matters.
