Mandy Tam Heung-man (
Traditional Chinese
A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...
: 譚香文; born 8 June 1957) is a Hong Kong politician, tax advisor and newspaper columnist who is currently a member of the
Wong Tai Sin District Council
The Wong Tai Sin District Council () is one of 18 such district council of Hong Kong, district councils in Hong Kong, representing the Wong Tai Sin District. The Wong Tai Sin District Council currently consists of 25 members, each elected from o ...
, representing
Lung Sing. She is also a former member of the
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kong ...
, having represented the
Accountancy functional constituency. Tam's columns have appeared in the ''
Hong Kong Economic Journal
The ''Hong Kong Economic Journal'' (HKEJ). is a Chinese-language daily newspaper published in Hong Kong by the Shun Po Co., Ltd.. Available in both Hong Kong and Macau, the newspaper mainly focuses on economic news and other related, usuall ...
'' and other publications.
Political career
In the
2003 District Council elections, Tam was elected as a member of the
Wong Tai Sin District Council
The Wong Tai Sin District Council () is one of 18 such district council of Hong Kong, district councils in Hong Kong, representing the Wong Tai Sin District. The Wong Tai Sin District Council currently consists of 25 members, each elected from o ...
, representing
Lung Sing. In the
2004 Legislative Council elections, she was elected as a Legislative Councillor, representing the
Accountancy functional constituency. She lost re-election in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
to
Paul Chan Mo-po
Paul Chan Mo-po (; born 18 March 1955) is the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong and former Secretary for Development of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. He was a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Accountancy functional co ...
. In 2006, Tam was a founding member of the
Civic Party
The Civic Party (CP) is a pro-democracy liberal political party in Hong Kong. It is currently chaired by barrister Alan Leong.
The party was formed in 2006 on the basis of the Basic Law Article 45 Concern Group, which was derived from the B ...
, but left the party in June 2009.
[ Tam lost re-election in Lung Sing in ]2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
to former district councilor Choi Luk-sing. In the 2011 District Council elections, Tam was elected again after a rematch with Choi in Lung Sing to the Wong Tai Sin District Council. She was re-elected in 2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
and 2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
.
Tam has been embroiled in two separate controversies, one with the HKICPA, a professional body whose members are electors of the accountancy functional constituency of the LegCo; the second one was a result of what was perceived to be a politically motivated charge of voting corruption. In both cases, Tam's conduct was ultimately vindicated by the Court.
Corruption accusations
In October 2010, upon a complaint lodged by Chow Ka-leung a, politician from a rival political party, Tam was charged by the ICAC (Independent Commission Against Corruption) with engaging in corrupt conduct in the 2008 Legislative Council elections for " fferingan advantage, namely service in the form of a free seminar to other persons as an inducement for them to vote for her at the election." Tam said the prosecution was politically motivated and maintained that the three free seminars she organized for professional accountants did not constitute a voting inducement. Lawmakers including Audrey Eu
Audrey Eu Yuet-mee is a former member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong and was founding leader of the Civic Party. She was a member of the Executive Committee of the Civic Party, focusing on party development. In politics, Eu has foc ...
and Paul Chan expressed concern over the case.
Tam was fully acquitted of the charge after the trial before magistrate Gary K. Y. Lam on 27 May 2011, who "drew a distinction between inducement to vote for a candidate and inducement to attend an electioneering activity". This distinction was further upheld when the case was heard on appeal in April 2012, with the judge Hon Lam J upholding the acquittal, in view of the point of law that: "It is not enough for an advantage to be offered. It has to be offered as an inducement. And an inducement to do something else is not enough: it has to be an inducement n this caseto vote for a particular candidate or the vote bribery charge to be upheld" The offering of a free CPD talk to an audience of professional accountants was not judged to be of value enough to serve as an inducement to change voting preference; nor was the free nature of the talk itself considered an intention to induce to alter people's voting preferences, although it was found to be an inducement to members to attend a talk they might otherwise not have attended. In the words of the judgment in the Court papers: "The conclusion that the Respondent amdid exploit the CPD talk as an inducement to the electors to attend the tea-gathering (and to hear the speeches of Mrs. Chan and herself) does not necessarily mean that she intended the CPD talk to be an inducement to vote for her... Section 11(1) itself makes it clear that offering an advantage and inducement are two different elements in the offense. Thus, a finding of advantage does not necessarily lead to a finding of inducement." The Court upheld the acquittal and dismissed the appeal.[
]
2021 LegCo election
Tam ran in the "patriots-only" 2021 Legislative Council election in the newly created Kowloon Central geographic constituency.
Controversies
GST introduction survey
In mid-September 2006, during a period of heated debate on the Hong Kong Government
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong Special administrative regions of China, ...
's plan to introduce a GST (General Sales Tax), Tam released the interim results of a survey on public attitudes towards the introduction of the GST, independently conducted by the East Asia Work Based Learning Centre of Middlesex University
Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...
. After initial reluctance, the survey questionnaires were distributed by the HKICPA
The Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA, ) is the professional accounting body of Hong Kong.
Its main responsibilities are:
*Registering accountants and issuing practising certificates.
*Regulating the professional cond ...
, the professional body representing certified public accountants in Hong Kong, alongside an editorial by the President of the Institute stating the body's support for the GST proposal.[Court Judgement – 28 August, 2007 (HCAL 9/2007)](_blank)
/ref> Only 311 out of circa 26,000 of the territory's accountants responded to the survey; of those who have responded, 62 percent opposed the introduction of a General Sales Tax. In a report of the survey findings, Tam concluded that the majority of respondents opposed a GST, and further suggested that the government should look into other means to broaden its tax base. However, with a response rate of just 1.2 percent, many questioned the validity of the survey findings. In a response letter to the report, the HKICPA
The Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA, ) is the professional accounting body of Hong Kong.
Its main responsibilities are:
*Registering accountants and issuing practising certificates.
*Regulating the professional cond ...
expresses doubt on Tam's interpretation of the survey findings.[A response letter from HKICPA to Tam, 9 October 2006](_blank)
/ref>
Dispute with the HKICPA
For nearly 20 years, the HKICPA
The Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA, ) is the professional accounting body of Hong Kong.
Its main responsibilities are:
*Registering accountants and issuing practising certificates.
*Regulating the professional cond ...
(Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants) had undertaken a newsletter distribution service on behalf of the sitting Legislative Council member representing the accountancy functional constituency. The newsletter serves as a means for the elected LegCo functional representative to communicate with those who are eligible, or potentially eligible, to vote in the accountancy functional constituency.
On 9 October 2006, the HKICPA issued a letter to all its members notifying them that the Institute had made a decision to stop the distribution of the newsletter to its members on Tam's behalf. The decision was made over concerns that, in the view of HKICPA, Tam had adopted an increasingly political stance on many issues. Although not officially related to the decision, Tam had at the time openly criticised the Institute in two Chinese newspapers in Hong Kong on various matters, including its pro-Government stance on the introduction of the GST, which further deteriorated the already fragile relationship between her and the Institute. In the letter to its members, the HKICPA said it needed to maintain its political independence and distanced itself from Tam's personal viewpoints.
Tam wrote a number of correspondences to HKICPA to discuss the issue, pointing out that as a political representative of the accountancy functional constituency in the Legislative Council, her communications to the members of the accounting profession via the newsletter service were both necessary and necessarily political, as befits the brief of the newsletter itself since its very inception. In addition, Tam would be prepared to pay for the cost of separate mailings to constituency members. The HKICPA replied each time to again reaffirm its initial decision.
Tam then sought judicial review
Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incompat ...
of the HKICPA's decision to stop the newsletter distribution, and claimed the Institute's decision was unlawful on 5 separate grounds. The case was ultimately found in her favour. The Institute was then ordered to resume distribution of the newsletter to the members of the Institute on behalf of Tam as the sitting LegCo functional representative for the accountancy profession.Court Judgement – August 28, 2007
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tam, Mandy
1957 births
Living people
Chinese Christians
Hong Kong Christians
Chinese accountants
Hong Kong accountants
District councillors of Wong Tai Sin District
Civic Party politicians
The Frontier (Hong Kong, 2010) politicians
People Power (Hong Kong) politicians
HK LegCo Members 2004–2008
Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2017–2021
21st-century Hong Kong women politicians