Ip Kwok-him
In late January Miriam Lau (Liberal Party) said her party would work closely with DAB to field candidates in the by-elections. James Tien and his brother Michael indicated their interest, but DAB vice-chairman Ip Kwok-him said there were divergent views within his party and that they would only take part in the by-elections if they are not seen as a referendum. Placed in a dilemma by the resignations and the subsequent statements from central government politicians, pro-government politicians could not contest the polls for fear of being seen by Beijing to condone the "unconstitutional act", they thus all planned to boycott it. Tam Yiu-chung, Chairman of the DAB, criticised the by-election as "a farce...It's a waste of taxpayers' money...It promotes social conflict..."