Roy Tang Yun-kwong

Roy Tang Yun-kwong Tang's appointment took effect on September 15, 2011. Tang did not have previous broadcasting experience. This led to some suggestions of government intervention into freedom of the press and fear that he would interfere with their editorial independence. A survey conducted by the Democratic Party in 2013 revealed that over 40% of its respondents wished for Tang to step down from his position.

Tang dual role as chief editor of broadcasting at RTHK and an administrative officer in the government was also challenged.

Legco Review controversy In 2012 in an internal meeting, Tang suggested terminating the 26-year-old Legco Review, a programme on Hong Kong's legislature. This caused controversy. Opponents of move suggested Tang was attempting to eliminate RTHK's ability to criticise controversial world issues and viewed Tang's actions as political interference. They aired their grievances through the mass media, creating groups and pages on social media like Facebook to draw attention to the issue. Some even made fun of Tang by nicknaming him "the last samurai of RTHK" or spoofing his photos. Proponents believed that RTHK's programmes were mostly used to mock the government officials and government policies in a one-sided manner. They claimed that Tang, as a government official, could balance the internal views in RTHK towards the government. Thus, they staged a rally and started campaigns to support Tang.

Headliner controversy In 2013, Tang criticized the idea of using Adolf Hitler and the Nazis as characters in the parody programme Headliner. In the end, the producers scrapped the idea and used characters from the story Journey to the West instead. This led to criticism that Tang was using his authority to interfere with RTHK's editorial independence.

Sze Wing-yuen controversy In 2013, Tang did not approve the promotion of Sze Wing-yuen, RTHK's assistant director of TV and corporate business. Some claimed that it was because Sze had defied Tang's orders, hindering the completion of Tang's "political mission".

Later years In 2015, Tang was appointed Commissioner of Customs and Excise. As with the RTHK, Tang was chosen for the role despite no previous customs experience.

This was followed, in 2017, by his appointed as Permanent Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs. Tang attracted criticism in 2018 when he was allowed back into the territory despite losing his Hong Kong ID card and mainland Chinese entry permit. Tang served as Permanent Secretary until his retirement in 2022