Kenneth Fok Kai-kong JP (Chinese: 霍啟剛; born 2 July 1979) is a Hong Kong businessman and politician. The eldest grandson of tycoon Henry Fok and eldest son of Timothy Fok, he is Legislative Councillor for the Sports, Performing Arts, Culture and Publication Functional Constituency. He is the vice president of the Fok Ying Tung Group, vice president of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
Kenneth Fok Kai-kong | |
|---|---|
霍啟剛 | |
 Fok in 2019 | |
| Member of the Legislative Council | |
| Assumed office 1 January 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Ma Fung-kwok |
| Constituency | Sports, Performing Arts, Culture and Publication |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 2 July 1979 British Hong Kong |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Timothy Fok Loletta Chu |
| Education | Pembroke College, Oxford (BA) |
Biography
editFok was born into a prominent pro-Beijing business family. His grandfather, Henry Fok, was a Hong Kong real estate developer, president of the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Football Association, and was one of the first Hong Kong entrepreneurs to invest in mainland China, in the 1980s. He rose to become the vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). His father, Timothy Fok, is also president of the Hong Kong Football Association and the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, a member of the CPPCC National Committee and a former member of the Legislative Council for the Sports, Performing Arts, Culture and Publication functional constituency. His mother, Loletta Chu, was the winner of the 1977 Miss Hong Kong Pageant.
Fok graduated from Pembroke College, Oxford, with a bachelor's degree in economics and management before returning to Hong Kong to join his family business and subsequently become vice president of the Fok Ying Tung Group. With his family's political background and influence in the sports development, he was appointed to serve on various government advisory and statutory bodies, including the chair of the Committee of Youth Activities in Hong Kong, member of the Youth Development Commission, Commission on Poverty, and Betting and Lotteries Commission; executive vice chair of Greater Bay Area Homeland Youth Community Foundation, standing committee member of Youth Committee of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, standing committee member of the All-China Youth Federation, and vice chairman of Tianjin Youth Federation and trustee of the China Oxford Scholarship Fund.[1][2] Other public offices he holds include member of the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, adviser to the Association of Chinese Culture of Hong Kong, adviser to the Hong Kong Culture and Art Promotion Association and the chairman of Culture Action.[1]
He is also vice chairman of Elite Sports Committee and ex-officio member of Sports Commission of the Home Affairs Bureau, vice president of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, president of the Gymnastics Association of Hong Kong, China, director of Hong Kong Sports Institute, a committee member of the International Relations Committee of the Olympic Council of Asia, president of the Asian Electronic Sports Federation, and member of the International Experts Committee For Global Active City Asian Standard. His appointment as vice president of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, where his father Timothy Fok is a long-time president, was scrutinised by the media, which claimed that Timothy Fok appointed his son without transparency, and that Kenneth Fok had no track record in any type of sporting achievement.[3]
Fok was appointed member of the Tianjin Municipal Committee Member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. He was also appointed as a part-time member of the Central Policy Unit during the Donald Tsang administration from 2008 to 2009. He was also appointed member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, following the paths of his grandfather and father. In 2016, he was appointed Justice of the Peace by the Hong Kong government.[1]
Controversies
edit
In December 2021, it was reported that Fok was eligible to vote four times in the 2021 Hong Kong legislative election, yielding 0.0366618% of the total voting value (elected seats), which is 7377 times more than the value of an average voter's total voting value.[4] He was elected as a member of the Legislative Council following his win in the Sports, Performing Arts, Culture and Publication constituency.
On 5 January 2022, Carrie Lam announced new warnings and restrictions against social gathering ascribed to the potential for COVID-19 outbreaks.[5] One day later, it was discovered that Fok had attended a birthday party hosted by Witman Hung Wai-man, with 222 guests.[6][7][8] At least one guest tested positive for COVID-19, causing all guests to be quarantined.[8] Fok later refused to discuss how he could be held accountable for attending the party after the government had warned against gathering in large groups.[9]
In January 2024, Fok said that funding from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC) for an awards show had been cut to "reduce the risk of potentially breaching" the national security law.[10]
Personal life
editFok met Guo Jingjing, China's "princess of diving" and multiple Olympic gold medallist, in 2004. The couple married on 8 November 2012 and have a son and two young daughters.[11] In 2019, his father Timothy gifted a HK$160 million house in Repulse Bay to Kenneth and his family.[12]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Mr. Kenneth Fok Kai KONG, JP". Our Hong Kong Foundation.
- ^ "Fok, Kenneth Kai Kong 霍啟剛". Webb-site Who's Who.
- ^ "How a cabal controls Hong Kong's Olympic sports EJINSIGHT - ejinsight.com". EJINSIGHT. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ^ FactWire (15 December 2021). "Factwire: 41 privileged voters have 7,200 times greater power than a regular Hong Kong voter following election revamp". Hong Kong Free Press HKFP. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
- ^ "Bars, gyms to close, 6pm restaurant curfew as Hong Kong ramps up Omicron battle". South China Morning Post. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
- ^ "衞生防護中心最新發現洪為民宴會人數為222人 - RTHK".
- ^ Hong Kong Finds New Suspected Covid Case at Official’s Scandal-Hit Birthday Party
- ^ a b "All 170 guests of Covid-19 scandal-hit birthday party sent to quarantine". South China Morning Post. 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
- ^ "Pro-Beijing camp closes ranks over birthday party scandal, blames Cathay". South China Morning Post. 8 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ Lee, James. "Hong Kong drama awards calls on arts council to retract claims". hongkongfp.com. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
- ^ "Guo Jingjing and Kenneth Fok's surprisingly normal life – Andy Lau and Jackie Chan might have attended the Olympic diving champion and Hong Kong entrepreneur's lavish wedding, but now the celebrity couple keep a low profile". South China Morning Post. 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Push presents: 4 Hong Kong celebrity couples gifted mansions just for giving birth". South China Morning Post. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.