[Interview] Former Police Report Host Resigns: “Do I have to support them even when they are wrong?”

Text: Ronson Chan

Photography: Peter Wong

“Through my true self, toughness, sweat and toil, blood and simple heart, I pursue the bigger meaning” [Translation of “Hero Story”, the theme song of the movie “Police Story”] Jackie Chan's "Hero Story" is a tribute to the police. The song became a household favourite and it was chosen as the theme song of the show Police Report. 

But whether a police officer can stay true to him/herself in reality is a matter of opinion. Police Report will go off the air next month. Ruby Leung Ho-yu, the former host of Police Report, who left her job a few months ago, admitted she has a strong personality, “Some of my colleagues found me despicable.” In fact, police officers portrayed in TV and movies are often very attractive people. Tang Ping-keung admitted he learned to become a police officer by watching Alex Fong and Jackie Chan on the screen, while Leung liked Ng Cheuk-hei for his role in “The Academy” (2004), from which her admiration for the police grew. “But I wouldn’t learn how to be a police officer from Ng. I wouldn’t learn how to be a police officer from an actor,” she added.

This former police officer, a university graduate who held pens more often than guns, said her departure from the force had nothing to do with the anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill (Anti-ELAB) movement. The fact was she could not adapt to the culture of the force, “There should be different voices in this society and there should be tolerance. They can't say you must be blue [blue ribbon or government supporters] if you join the police force. I’m an independent thinker, do I have to support you even if you do something wrong?” She found few supporters in the police force but the public is very supportive of her. Her Instagram account has over 6,700 followers, an increase of 3,000 in three months.

Her reasons for joining the police force

Maybe the stories for most people who choose to join the police force are very similar. Either there is a family member who is a police officer or some might have been inspired by police dramas and movies at a young age. Some want to find a stable and somewhat meaningful job. Leung’s experience fits perfectly with all four elements above – one of her family members is a cop and she always had a good impression of cops, “I am very fond of a righteous policeman. That’s why I like my husband very much.” A little footnote here—her husband is a serving police officer. When she was in high school, she was attracted to the rogue but pure-hearted Chung Lap-man (played by Ng Cheuk-hei) in “The Academy” by TVB.

After graduating from university, she worked as a reporter for ATV in its stormy times when ATV was constantly defaulting on her wage payment. She then considered joining the police force, “I could contribute to the society by maintaining social order. Maybe I was not a reporter, but I could still help others through another way.”

It is a pity that the Hong Kong Police College in reality is not like the TV dramas, where everyone acts with cohesion. “The college was divided. 19 students out of a class of 30 made it to graduation, and there are only 15 left now as several of them have resigned.” The Umbrella Movement had not yet started when she was in the college. Those who resigned after the Umbrella Movement were the best students in class, the Recruit Police Constables (RPC) with ‘Silver Rooster’. “I only found out about this after I resigned from my job because I had no contact with them since I left the police college.” There is no solidarity in the college. The teachers could either be very nice or apathetic to students. “The teachers did not talk to us except in class and they did not talk with us either. The other class (of male cadets) did celebrate passing out (graduation). I don't understand why our class would be like this.” She figured about one fifth of her class were university graduates and their independent thinking might have made a difference.

Becoming a “madam with a pen” after only on patrol for half a month

After leaving the Police College, Leung was dispatched to the North Point Division and started her career as a “madam with a gun”, but only for a month and a half. “I am a university graduate and I understand English well so then I went to work in the administration department. I was only on patrol for two months.” She stressed that she knew how to handle routine police work, such as arresting shoplifters and handling the discovery of dead bodies.

She then moved to the division's reporting centre. During the Umbrella Movement, most of the male police officers were dispatched to work in Admiralty and Mongkok. So in addition to clerical work, she also had to issue penalty tickets and assist in handling all cases involving women “because I was the only female police officer".

Afterwards, she was transferred to the back office of the reporting centre, where she assisted the duty officer in receiving suspects and taking fingerprints. After a few months as a "madam with a pen", she became a plainclothes officer, first in the Organised Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB) to investigate debt collection and loan-related crimes, and then to the Special Duties Team to tackle prostitution and illegal gambling cases, "arresting many ‘hens' [prostitutes in Cantonese slang] near Coronet Court at Chun Yeung Street".

The road to hosting Police Report

After working in these two positions for two years, Leung decided to give it a go when she saw a recruitment notice looking for a host for Police Report. 

There were quite some obstacles in the way. First it was the Police Public Relations Bureau (PPRB) selection process, where she needed to record a video clip and the Chief Superintendent of PPRB would select three candidates for Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) to choose. “Four RTHK directors picked me but the PPRB made their choice based on appearance while the RTHK decision was based on my work.”

It is no secret that the police force chooses the host of Police Report based on appearance alone. There was an official video clip by the police force “A day with the police: What makes the host of Police Report?” which stated clearly that “since you are handsome (or beautiful), be the host!” and “the host of Police Report is one of the most well known positions in the police force. In addition to having a ‘camera face', you also need to be a good speaker and have extensive knowledge of policing.” “Camera face” means looking good is a prerequisite.

In the end, without knowing how, Leung became a host of Police Report. She stressed that she was not a “vase” [having good looks without other strengths], "I know everything behind the scenes about being a host. I am not a vase," she said. It only takes her once to complete the shot without delaying my colleagues’ work. She also knows how to present police news bulletin for press release in a short time, “I can read it out as soon as I see it because I have experience while others don’t.”

Apart from being the host of Police Report, she was also responsible for handling applications for the use of police uniform in movies, as well as giving ideas on the dialogue for her show and some YouTube videos for the police force. To put it simply, her police work was very “non-police”.

Of course, the moment she joined Police Report as a host, she knew she would only get further and further away from routine police work and ordinary police officers.

Leung was open about the fact that she wanted to leave already back in 2016 when she was on the Special Duties Team, “I could not cope with the culture in the police force. I'm not one of those who fights for promotion. So the people around me would doubt my intentions because I was so hardworking and then there would be a lot of gossiping.” Leung said that she stayed true to herself and did not join any small circles.

She witnessed many grievances within the police force. “In some cases, I’ve seen someone who went through the selection process and met certain criteria but still couldn't get to the desired position because he/ she did not have the ‘phone line’.” Phone line means personal connection. 

She supports the police and those who comply with Police General Orders (PGO)

Office politics can be found everywhere. What made it unbearable for Leung was that the force only allowed one voice and one opinion. “You can only voice the same opinions as others. If you don't support them, you are a yellow ribbon [pro-democracy supporter].” What if one remains silent? “People will ask if you support Chu King-wai [a former police officer who was imprisoned for attacking a passerby with police baton in Mongkok in 2014]?” She still believed supporting the police was not the problem, but the real question was which police officers to support, “I support you as long as you follow the PGO and Force Procedures Manuals (FPM).”

She thought it was unhealthy that there is only one voice in the police force, “There should be different voices in society. There should be tolerance. You can’t say someone is a blue ribbon just because they join the police force. I'm an independent thinker myself. If you do something wrong, why do I have to support you?” This is a reasonable idea in society, but it is an anomaly in the police force. She was often accused of ignoring the feelings of her colleagues and not thinking about the bigger picture. “If you have made a mistake, then apologise. Don’t say that you want to maintain staff relations. I think it’s bullshit.” She believed that the police serve the public, "If they (the public) don't like you, how can you serve them?”

Leung's police officer status was a thing of the past, and even the show Police Report which she once hosted, will also be a thing of the past.

It seems that the public finds her present situation very acceptable. With more than 6,700 followers on her instagram account, Leung appears with her dog from time to time to promote awareness of animal protection and to continue her quest for something meaningful. It's also worth mentioning that her breakup with the police force had something to do with the Internet, all because she was found to have liked a Facebook page called “Hong Kong Popo" and unliked the police force's page, “Why did I unlike it? I don’t need to tell anyone, as long as I (know) why.”

Source: https://www.facebook.com/710476795704610/posts/3280881598664104/