Page 181 of 312
338
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR. SALES: -Mr. Chairman, may I support Dr. LEE in what he has just said and commend you for the time that you have spent in Kowloon. It is most unusual for heads of Government departments to turn their attention to the other side of the harbour and I would suggest that this be made a matter of departmental routine that heads of departments be less chair-borne but be more inclined to visit the back streets of Kowloon and perhaps also of Hong Kong, for instance, of Shek O. (Laughter).
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS:-I am not sure, Mr. Chairman, if Dr. LEE is still waiting for my reply. (Laughter).
DR. LEE: -Oh, yes. (Laughter).
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS: -I am aware of the condition of the roads in Hong Kong, but I think many of them are in extremely good condition. Regarding the ones which are in bad condition, we will certainly do our best to repair them within the funds available for carrying out maintenance of roads.
MR. SALES: Mr. Chairman, would you refer my remarks to the Colonial Secretariat regarding the need for heads of departments to visit all parts of the urban areas all the time?
CHAIRMAN: -Yes, Sir.
(11) MRS. E. ELLIOTT asked the following question:
(a) Is the side street along the Resettlement Officers' Quarters at Wong Tai Sin intended for the private use of and as a parking place for the staff only?
(b) If the answer to (a) is in the affirmative, what road may be used by the people living at Block "U" and adjacent blocks, from the No. 3 bus terminus?
(c) Which Department is responsible for clearing the rubbish and garbage from the area mentioned above? Is it true that the rubbish on the spare piece of land here dates back to Typhoon Wanda?
THE COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT replied as follows:-
The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative.
The answer to the second part of the question is that residents of Block "U" and adjacent blocks already have direct access to the No. 3 bus terminus across the open piece of ground lying between the departmental staff quarters and the Housing Society's estate. I appreciate that the present means of access is unpaved and to some extent obstructed by hawkers, second-hand furniture dealers and others.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
339
of ground lying between the departmental staff quarters and the Housing Society's estate. I appreciate that the present means of access is unpaved and to some extent obstructed by hawkers, second-hand furniture dealers and others.
In reply to the third part of the question, the area is outside the boundaries of the Wong Tai Sin Resettlement Estate, so that the responsibility for cleansing lies with the Urban Services Department whose attention has been drawn to the need to keep it clean. When I last saw the site on 29th October, there was not an undue amount of rubbish there and I should say that it certainly cannot have been there since Typhoon Wanda, which occurred in 1962. (Laughter).
MRS. ELLIOTT:-Mr. Chairman, may I ask the Commissioner, through you, if the 29th October when he visited the site, was a wet day?
COMMISSIONER for RESETTLEMENT: No, it was certainly not wet at the time when I visited the site.
MRS. ELLIOTT:-Then, Mr. Chairman, may I ask the Commissioner, through you, if he will take the advice of Mr. SALES to visit the area on a wet day?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT: ---Certainly, on the next wet day I shall bear that in mind. (Laughter).
MRS. ELLIOTT:-Mr. Chairman, according to the second paragraph of the reply, the people have to cross the piece of open ground lying between the departmental staff quarters and the Housing Society's estate, and according to the third paragraph this is outside the boundaries of the Wong Tai Sin Resettlement Estate. Am I to assume that no access road has been made for this Estate at all?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-There is no direct access except across the open ground to the bus stop to which you were referring, although the people can, of course, go by a more roundabout way.
MRS. ELLIOTT:-Mr. Chairman, I do not think I would call it an access road. It is absolutely impassable in wet weather. May I ask why the staff already have parking spaces in the central area of the quarters? They also use the road. Is it our purpose to allow the servants to be better served than the ones they serve? They have the road while the people they serve have no access road whatsoever.
Page 181 of 312