Hong Kong home affairs chief Caspar Tsui resigns

Hong Kong’s Secretary for Home Affairs Caspar Tsui resigned on Monday, effective immediately, despite efforts by pro-establishment figures to save him from a disgraceful exit.

He recently attended the birthday party of a delegate to China’s legislature, where two of the nearly 200 guests tested positive for COVID-19.

Caspar said he made a wrong decision to attend the banquet on Jan. 3 when all efforts should have been devoted to controlling the spread of the virus.

“I made the wrong decision to attend a banquet on Jan. 3 and behaved in an inappropriate manner when all efforts should have been devoted to controlling the spread of the virus,” Tsui said.

Caspar was among 15 officials who attended the 53rd birthday of Witman Hung, a city delegate to the national legislature before new COVID-19 restrictions came into force.

The event took place after Lam appealed to Hong Kong people to avoid large gatherings.

Caspar in a statement on Monday said he had tendered his resignation to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and would take responsibility for his actions.

He added that he was grateful for the opportunity to “serve the people of Hong Kong”.

“As one of the principal officials taking the lead in the anti-epidemic fight, I have not set the best example during the recent outbreak”, he said.