MANILA, Philippines — Hong Kong’s Chief Executive candidate Henry Tang Ying-yen initiated Thursday a charm offensive, saying he does not mind netizens making fun of him.

Referring to an Internet graphic of him inside an open coffin with rival Leung Chun-ying about to close it, Tang said: “I don’t mind. But dying once is enough.”

Tang was turning the other cheek at a forum hosted by Netizens Power, a four-member team running for the information technology subsector of the Election Committee.

Three of the four are members of the Internet Professional Association - a group embroiled in a political interference row this year that is reportedly backing Tang.

He said it was not unusual for him to meet members from iProA, as he was once the secretary for commerce, industry and technology and needed to meet those working in the sector.

Tang was pushed for a response to the coffin gimmick, which followed the widespread circulation of an image of him lying on a bed during a visit to a family living in a subdivided flat in Tsuen Wan.

“Hong Kong is indeed a place where there is a lot of creativity,” he said.

That same judgment also extended to a doctored poster for the upcoming Ann Hui film “A Simple Life” that made fun of him and former Legislative Council president Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai.

Tang dismissed a suggestion by Leung that the election campaign had “deteriorated in quality,” with the latter accusing a Sing Tao Daily reporter of chasing after him while shouting out “embarrassing” questions.

“I don’t think this will result in the quality of the election slipping. Usually if you [reporters] don’t raise your voices, it’s difficult [for the interviewee] to hear you,” he said.

“As journalists, you have the responsibility to fully cover an event. You are only doing your jobs.”

Tang, earlier identified by the media as a “pig” and Leung as a “wolf,” said he would describe himself as a homo sapien instead.

Meanwhile, Bank of East Asia deputy chief executive Brian Li Man- bun said Tang is “truly familiar” with operations in the financial sector.

Li - son of David Li Kwok-po, the BEA chairman and head of Tang’s campaign office - said Tang has done many things to help develop the financial industry such as the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement. But he stopped short of declaring who he will support.

With fears rising over voter registration, Electoral Affairs Commissioner Barnabas Fung Wah warned Election Committee voters to check their qualifications amid reports that some membership lists of organizations are outdated.

He said organizations have a duty to verify the accuracy of their membership ahead of Sunday’s vote in which 1,300 candidates will contest 766 seats in 24 subsectors. (The Standard)