BEIJING, June 23 -- Donald Tsang is considered a “bureaucratic” official by Hong Kong media, who understands and abides by the rules for civil servants.

“He has never disobeyed any decisions made by his superiors during his more than 30-year career as a civil servant,” a Hong Kong reporter once said.

He is also an “iron hand” when enforcing government policies, the Shenzhen Economic Daily reported. Even though he was questioned by Hong Kong media and the public many times when inviting bids for an entertainment facility in Kowloon, he said he would not give up his effort no matter what kind of pressure he came under.

One of Tsang’s interesting characteristics is that he likes to cite films when discussing politics. He once compared the transparency of Hong Kong’s fiscal situation to Sharon Stone — the star in American film “Basic Instinct” — saying that both had nothing to hide.

He has lost his temper in public many times during disagreements with others on government policies. He once told reporters that he was grateful to his wife for tolerating his “bad temper” for long.

Tsang is also known to be a man who can have a big mouth. He once surprised many people by saying that the Hong Kong dollar could not be taken off its peg to the U.S. dollar as the result would be like that of a girl who had lost her virginity — anything could happen, the report said.

However, he kept his mouth tightly closed after Tung Chee-hwa resigned and many people were speculating regarding who would be the next chief executive.

He pays great attention to his public image and the protection of his privacy. Once a Hong Kong weekly magazine interviewed his chef and published an article on his private life. Tsang immediately took action, hiring a lawyer to issue a legal letter — with money from his own pocket. The magazine had to apologize to him in public for violating his privacy. Tsang was the first high-ranking official in Hong Kong to take legal action against local media to protect his privacy.

Born in 1944 in Hong Kong, the son of a policeman, Tsang rose to the top from humble beginnings.

He had to give up his chance of entering college, to make a living for his family at the age of 20. In 1967, he became a civil servant in Hong Kong. He was sent to receive a training program at Harvard University for his outstanding achievements in 1980 and obtained a master’s degree in public administration from the prestigious university a year later.

In 1995, he became the first Chinese fiscal chief in Hong Kong.

He has held 20 different posts in the Hong Kong government during his 34 years of public service.

Tsang’s proudest moment was in 1998 when he led the fiscal department to enter the financial market with government funds and defeated international hot money, which helped to maintain the stability of Hong Kong’s stock market.

“I could barely sleep the night before the decision was made and was awakened at midnight by nightmares,” he said. He admitted that he could not hold back tears that night because of the pressure.

More than 65 percent of Hong Kong citizens appreciated Tsang’s performance in the financial crisis, according to a poll conducted by the University of Hong Kong.

(Source: Shenzhen Daily)