All undersecretaries and political assistants of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government took the oath of allegiance to the HKSAR Basic Law and the HKSAR on Wednesday morning, a move that will be completed by all Hong Kong civil servants by the end of next month, Hong Kong media reported. The oath-taking ceremony was held at government headquarters, and it was administered by Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam. Hong Kong Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen on Sunday said civil servants should understand their responsibilities before joining the government. Senior civil servants within the bureaucracy, including permanent secretaries and department heads, will reportedly follow suit on Friday, RTHK reported. As of June 30, there were about 177,300 civil servants in Hong Kong, accounting for 4.6 percent of Hong Kong’s workforce, media reported.

Source: Manila Times December 17, 2020 16:52 UTC