Exclusive | Hong Kong molecular geneticist Dennis Lo ‘sole candidate’ to become CUHK president
Source says Lo, famed for pioneering non-invasive prenatal test, to be offered similar employment package to outgoing CUHK head Rocky Tuan
A source said on Sunday that the university’s governing council would meet molecular geneticist Professor Dennis Lo Yuk-ming on Thursday and vote on his nomination the following day. If approved by three-quarters of the 30-strong council, Lo will succeed Professor Rocky Tuan Sung-chi as president and vice-chancellor from January.
Observers described Lo’s academic reputation as “stellar” and said they expected a pressing mission for the new head would be to repair the university’s image, tarnished by the social unrest in 2019, and to maintain close ties with mainland Chinese counterparts.
Tuan, who was embroiled in controversy in the wake of the 2019 anti-government protests, handed in his resignation just a week into a new three-year term in January, citing personal reasons. He said at the time it was “an opportune moment” for the university to search for a new leader.
Lo, a pioneer of non-invasive prenatal testing, has been with the university for 27 years. He is the director of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences at CUHK, and the associate research dean at the university’s medical faculty.
Lo, 60, would be offered a five-year term with a pay package similar to Tuan’s, the source said.
