Peggy Wong Pik-kiu, a long-serving district councillor in Hong Kong, has resigned from her position as well as from several community roles, citing health concerns amid ongoing controversy over alleged proxy-vote irregularities linked to the 2023 Wang Fuk Court fire. Wong’s resignation was announced by the Home Affairs Department on Tuesday, with Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak Mei-kun expressing respect for her decision.
Wong, affiliated with the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, represented the Tai Po South constituency on the Tai Po District Council for over two decades. In addition to stepping down from the council, she also relinquished her roles as a member of the Tai Po South Area Committee and as captain of the Tai Po Kwong Fuk and Plover Cove subdistrict care team.
The resignation follows media reports last month accusing Wong’s team of collecting proxy votes from Wang Fuk Court residents, including an allegation that a proxy vote was obtained from a deceased flat owner prior to the tragic fire. The blaze, which occurred in November 2023, lasted 43 hours and resulted in 168 deaths—including a firefighter—and displaced nearly 5,000 people.
Wong had been absent from nine consecutive council meetings, citing health reasons, prior to her formal resignation. Residents of Wang Fuk Court claimed that she gathered proxy votes and attempted to influence decisions regarding the estate’s renovation before the fire. Wong acknowledged collecting proxy votes at two meetings but denied offering any incentives in exchange. She also indicated last December that she intended to file reports with the police and the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) related to the incident.
During hearings held by an independent committee investigating the fire’s cause, multiple residents alleged that Wong and associates intimidated attendees and collected proxy votes to sway decisions at the estate owners’ assemblies. In a statement submitted to the committee, Wong confirmed collecting proxy votes before two meetings in 2021 and 2024 but denied involvement in proxy-vote collection for the 2024 general meeting, where Prestige Construction and Engineering was selected as the main renovation contractor.
In June, authorities charged seven individuals and two companies—including directors of Prestige and senior personnel from project consultant Wills Power Architects—with 25 offences connected to the Wang Fuk Court fire.
A spokesman for the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau said the government considers a by-election to fill Wong’s vacant seat a low priority, given the scheduled district council election late next year.