Incoming chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is finalizing the line- up of her cabinet.
It's supposed to be a new start, but a number of faces aren't fresh at all. Instead, some are leftovers from the Leung Chun-ying administration.
The public may be forgiven for being disappointed, but this is probably the best compromise Lam can cobble together in the face of reality.
On the one hand, the talented in the private sector are all the more unwilling to jump into the "hot kitchen" after seeing what's happened in recent years. While many are willing to work part time for the public, a full-time endeavor would be a totally different matter.
The reluctance certainly has much to do with the local political atmosphere that has gotten worse rather than better. In contrast, it was easier for former chief executives Tung Chee-hwa and Donald Tsang Yam-kuen to recruit capable hands from the private sector during their regimes.
Why are the gifted unwilling? That's worth reflecting.
Lam has yet to announce names, but it's almost certain the top three heavyweights - namely Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po and Justice Secretary Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung - will continue in their current posts after July 1.
Yuen's stay would be temporary, until arrangements for co-location immigration clearance of the Express Rail Link are settled.
It's Lam's wish to slot in new faces to give her team a sense of freshness. Sadly, she can't.
For example, she's said to favor Lingnan University council chairman Rex Auyeung Pak-kuen as financial secretary after others turned down her invitation. Now it's back to square one, and Chan, the former development minister linked to various scandals, will stay put as the financial chief for the next five years.
While this is unfortunate, the new line-up isn't entirely without bright points. Much to the relief of parents, the inept education chief Eddie Ng Hak- kim will be succeeded by his undersecretary, Kevin Yeung Yun- hung. Suggestions that former Cantopop singer Agnes Chan Mei-ling would be Ng's replacement were little more than gossip.
However, there will be at least two new faces in the array of principal officials. Pro-establishment surveyor Tony Tse Wai-chuen, and Democratic Party founding member Law Chi- kwong are tipped to be Lam's secretary for development, and secretary for labor and welfare. Both had been lawmakers before.
Incumbent environment minister Wong Kam-sing will also carry on, despite speculation his undersecretary, Christine Loh Kung-wai, would take over. Wong may have had a shaky start back in 2012, but has been scandal-free over the years.
Others expected to be named as secretaries are: Frank Chan Fan, for transport and housing; Joshua Law Chi- kong, for civil service; Edward Yau Tang-wah, for commerce and economic development; Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, for constitutional and mainland affairs; Nicholas Yang Wei-hsiung, for innovation and technology; Lau Kong-wah, for home affairs; Sophia Chan Siu-chee, for food and health; John Lee Ka-chiu, for security; and James Henry Lau, for financial services and the treasury.
As said, it's a line-up that's a compromise between the old and the new.
