CHAPTER V
19. The proposals outlined in the preceding chapters are presented a basis for public discussion. Members of the public are urged to make their views known to the Government by putting them in writing to the Director of Ad- ministration and Management Services, Government Secretariat, Central Government Offices, Lower Albert Road, Hong Kong before 31st August 1980. If the proposals are agreed a White Paper containing firm proposals will then be published by the end of the year with a view to introducing the necessary legislation early in 1981.
20. Subsequently, it is anticipated that the drawing up of revised electoral rolls for the urban area and the New Territories would take nine months and the first election under the new system would therefore be held in March 1982. Interim arrangements would be made to extend the terms of office of those Urban Councillors whose terms would otherwise expire before that date. 21. In the meantime, the network of Town Management Committees and District Boards (currently titled District Advisory Boards) already established in the new towns will be consolidated. Their experimental counterparts in Kwun Tong will be extended to other Districts in the urban area through the establish- ment of District Management Committees and the reconstitution of City District Committees as District Boards thus laying the groundwork for a smooth transition.
22. In conclusion, it is stressed that the proposals in this paper are not definitive. They are presented in the belief that there is much room for improvement in the day-to-day management of District affairs and that this can best be achieved through the stimulus of public participation.
ANNEX I
Thinex provides brief details of the composition and functions of the
existing local administrative institutions. These are:
(I) In the New Territories
(A) The Heung Yee Kuk or Rural Consultative Council
(B) The District Advisory Board
(C) The Town Management Committee
(II) In the Urban Area
(A) The City District Committee
(B) The District Management Committee (C) The Urban Council
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