Ho Ching, wife of Lee Hsien Loong, prime minister of Singapore and CEO of state investor Temasek responded to reports saying the city state gains from Hong Kong's ongoing unrest, when she posted a more than 1,100-word Facebook post on Saturday, criticizing the "obsession" in framing Hong Kong and Singapore as competitors.
She then proceeded on giving her perspectives on Hong Kong's economic future, its role for the Chinese mainland and the world.
Ho reflected back on how Hong Kong once served as an entry point for trade with China. But as Beijing embarked on reform and opening-up, it has since become a service center of the country. She continued that Hong Kongers should "looking deep within themselves" in deciding the role they wish to play in and for China, and subsequently its role in the world.
File photo of Ho Ching at the G20 leaders summit in Hamburg, Germany July 8, 2017. /VCG Photo
On Hong Kong's relation with Chinese mainland
Ho provided her observations that, Hong Kong's gross domestic product (GDP) is now about three percent of China's. Since joining the WTO, China's GDP has grown over 10 times. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's GDP doubled.
Read more: Hong Kong finance chief warns of full-year negative growth amid unrest
Hong Kong at night. /VCG Photo
She continues that Hong Kong's real competition is in China: Shanghai, Guangzhou and Beijing. Some multinational companies are setting up operations or relocating to cities like Shanghai, instead of Hong Kong.
Ho cautioned that if China continued to "loosen up" and show improving conditions for living, this would pose a real challenge to Hong Kong's value, especially when there are huge manufacturing plants in the Chinese mainland. Ho said that Hong Kong provides almost no manufacturing jobs, with manufacturing is now around two to three percent of its GDP.
Shenzhen, which borders Hong Kong and has been dubbed China's "Silicon Valley", has surpassed the city in terms of GDP and "density of top Chinese talent".
Shenzhen Science and Technology Park. /VCG Photo
"Over the last 22 years, the real value of HK to China is as a demonstrator of the One China Two Systems concept, as a way to try to entice Taiwan back into her fold," Ho said in the post.
But if this is shown not to work, then the strategic value of Hong Kong concerning the question of Taiwan for China will greatly diminish, she concluded.
Hong Kong being a 'democratic petri dish'
"HK itself had never been a democracy, so even HK would have to feel its way forward as a democratic petri dish," Ho said.
"The thoughtless political structure that the British left behind hastily for HK is not a favor for HK, nor a viable route to democracy with HK characteristics, much less democracy with Chinese characteristics," she added.
The "long-time rival"
The attaching story to Ho's post described Singapore as a "long-time rival" to Hong Kong for the title of Asia's top financial center, adding Goldman Sachs' earlier estimation that about four billion U.S. dollars had left Hong Kong for Singapore between April and August.
A view of Singapore. /VCG Photo
In response, Ho stated that the obsession with the movement of some money and people to Singapore while ignoring the movement of people and money elsewhere to the U.S., Canada, Australia, and UK, especially for their professional talents, just misses the point.
Ho said that Singapore should rethink its role in the region and world amid shifting tides in geopolitics and technological advancement.
She concluded by asking everyone to "stay calm, think deeply, and act methodically and decisively, for a better, kinder, safer world for our people and country, our families, our future generations."