Letters | To preserve Hong Kong’s status as international financial hub, checks and balances must remain
- Readers discuss the need for government officials and advisers to avoid conflicts of interest, the shifting goalposts on the completion date of roadworks, and the need to help the large number of unemployed during the pandemic
Hong Kong’s governing elite has got to stop deluding itself and recognise that it needs to prove to the world that its institutions and governance are up to the standards expected of an international financial hub. That means demonstrating competent governance, proper regulatory enforcement where necessary, and following internationally recognised standards on business ethics and conflicts of interest.
Hyperbolic statements about being the “gateway to China” or the huge “potential of the Greater Bay Area” do not cut it with the investors and the professionals that really matter.
The Legislative Council, as part of Hong Kong’s system of governance, is supposed to provide checks and balances to the Hong Kong executive arm – Ip was very clear about that when the debate over the term “separation of powers” was raging a while ago.
It is true that in some parliamentary systems, all or nearly all cabinet ministers are also in the legislature, but that is no problem if the legislature is democratically elected and the powers of checks and balances can be kept intact. This is not the case in Hong Kong.
Being a self-anointed patriot should not exclude you from adhering to internationally recognised standards on such conflicts – every corporation and professional body will tell you that the mere perception of a conflict is enough for it to be taken seriously; the government must follow that same standard.
Lee Faulkner, Suffolk, UK
Roadwork completion date mustn’t be moving target
Many visitors to Sai Kung over the last few years will be aware of the roadworks going on along Hiram’s Highway which makes visiting Sai Kung by car or public transport an excruciating experience.
Well, the Transport Department places large notices at the roadworks to tell the public when to expect the works to be completed. In large letters they show the commencement date, the anticipated completion date and the original completion date, no doubt to demonstrate accountability and good stewardship to the public, a noble gesture.
But what many visitors will not be aware of is that each time the completion date is missed, the project team changes the original completion date too to match the new target completion date, so it looks like the project is still on target.
At the foot of Hing Keng Shek, between Marina Cove and Pak Sha Wan/Hebe Haven, workers are building a roundabout and this has happened, not once or twice, but now seven times. The work started in January 2017 and was originally scheduled to be completed by December 2020. When that target was missed, the date was moved to April 2021, then July, October, December and so on into 2022.
Now the completion date has been moved to December this year. Miraculously the original completion date was moved each time, to make us think the work is still on schedule.
It’s not the delay that annoys me most, it’s the deception. Who is responsible for this? Is the Transport Department lying to the government or is the government approving this and lying to us, or are both ignorant of the deception and just not checking project management reports properly?
Alastair Murray, Sai Kung
Time to help one another as unemployment rises
Those who have kept their jobs are not faring well either. The second iteration of the consumption voucher scheme that was introduced at the beginning of the year came at a time of soaring food and other prices. Now the average housewife can only afford to shop with discounts in supermarkets and other outlets. Those with scant resources have to resort to fast or junk food that is detrimental to health.
As a responsible Hongkonger, I try to donate and share resources whenever I can. We should all do our part to help one another overcome the challenge.
Jacqueline Kwan, Mid-Levels