Hong Kong district council hopefuls use lead-in-water scare to show their mettle
Candidates in next month's polls have used the summer's tainted water scandal as a way to show their mettle in the communities affected
For residents of 11 public housing estates, street-level politics might feel closer to home than ever ahead of next month's district council elections.
After weeks of using buckets to collect clean drinking water, they are now reliant on water filters at home as the city gets to grips with the discovery of excessive levels of lead in tap water. For parents, the worries continue - will having consumed excessive lead have a long-term developmental effect on their children?
It is understandable, in those circumstances, that many residents have been looking for help and advice wherever they can get it.
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The crisis has therefore provided an opportunity for would-be district councillors to show off their ability to work for the community, or put them to the test.
While the contamination was exposed by members of the pan-democratic camp, its candidates said their work on the incident had impressed some voters, but they were cautious about whether it would be enough to defeat their pro-establishment rivals.
In Kowloon City district, Kai Ching Estate - where the tainted water scandal first came to light - has become one of the hottest battlegrounds in the election. Along with the adjacent Tak Long Estate, it forms part of the new Kai Tak North constituency, a new seat created to reflect the development of the new housing estates on the site of the former airport.
