The Legislative Council (LegCo) elections were fair and open, the SAR's anti-graft chief said Tuesday.

Raymond Wong, commissioner for the Independent Commission Against Corruption, said a total of 87 complaints were received in relation to the elections, compared with 76 cases in the last LegCo elections in 2000.

Saying tight competition in the elections could have driven up the complaint figures, Wong said there was no evidence showing that corruption had increased in the elections.

He said the complaints were mostly about bribery of voters, vote planting and inaccurate declaration of candidates' qualifications. "The elections were completed in a fair and open manner," Wong said.

According to the electoral affairs authorities, a total of 1,628 complaints were received on Sunday, of which 487 cases were about the use of loud hailers by candidates and their campaign staff.

With regard to alleged canvassing and staying in restricted areas, there were about 150 cases each. There were also about 300 complaints about polling station arrangements and workers.

Police said that most of the complaints received on the election day seemed not serious, concerning noise nuisance in most cases.

Meanwhile, Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference member Chan Wing-kee said Hong Kong was a free society and the presence of legislators known for their radical stance only highlighted the multi-cultural characteristic of the SAR.

Chan believed that among the newly elected legislators, those supporting prosperity and stability counted for the majority.

As long as they backed reunification of the country and a prosperous and stable SAR, he believed they could communicate with the central government well.

Vice-Chairman of Hang Seng Bank Vincent Cheng said he was not concerned that radicals had been elected to the legislature.

On the contrary, he said he was more concerned about governance and would like to see it improve.

On another occasion, legislator-designate Lam Kin-fung of the Commercial functional constituency hoped for a more amicable and harmonious political scene after LegCo was formed.

Lam said more attention should be paid to improving the economic situation and fiscal deficits, adding that he had an open mind on the question of introducing sales tax and higher profit tax but was opposed to trimming the civil service and its rates of pay.

(China Daily HK Edition September 15, 2004)