The chairman of the Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC), David Lok, on Tuesday reminded care homes to refrain from influencing their elderly residents in the upcoming district council elections.

Lok’s comment follows an earlier announcement by the Social Welfare Department, which said it will subsidise around 200 care homes to arrange for shuttle buses to take their residents to the ballot boxes on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters after visiting a mock polling station in North Point, Lok said there’s no problem with the arrangement, as long as the care homes do not attempt to influence the voting decision of their residents.

"They have to make sure that the one who provides the transportation will not offer any advantage or persuade the voters to vote for a particular candidate,” the electoral affairs chief said.

“We will not actively police or send some people to investigate, but we will act upon complaints."

Earlier in the day, Chief Executive John Lee also said there is no problem with arranging transport for voters with special needs.

He said the move is simply intended to help people fulfil their civic responsibility by casting a ballot.