HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
It is also high time for the Government to study the necessity of assisting other post-secondary institutions to raise their administrative as well as academic standards, because our community will be needing more and better trained young people to help the building up of a better and even more prosperous society.
Without giving these institutions some form of assistance we can't expect to be able to influence them even at times when we want them to do certain things in a certain reasonable manner in the interest of all. The Government should look into this conscientiously before it is too late.
I cannot understand why the Government is so slow in enlarging the scope and power of this Council which has proved its efficiency and dedication. I was once warned that after taking this seat for four years, I may vacate it with a great deal of frustration. There is something in this warning that I begin to see as time goes on, though I have not yet lost my faith in the administration.
Sir, during these nine months of office, I have learned a great deal from Senior Members of both sides of the house, the Official Members and their staff through their unfailing effort in feeding me with information whenever asked for. Though I was a bit over ambitious in joining too many committees, it is a great challenge to accept the heavy commitment conscientiously; it also brings about a great deal of satisfaction. I wish to mention my gratitude to the secretary of the Council, Mr. TINSON in particular because I have to bother him most of the time whenever I want to know more of what I must do and he always helps me to do it well.
Sir, I beg to support the Motion. (Applause).
MR. PETER P. F. CHAN:- Mr. Chairman, last year when I addressed this Council during the annual debate, I mentioned the values of ward councillors performing certain functions of an ombudsman. Now this subject is causing so much public concern (and many speakers before me have touched on the subject) I like to give it my own personal observation. I think that the ombudsman as he is now in Scandinavia is not feasible in Hong Kong. I do not say that we do not need at the present time an ombudsman but I think that we have to establish an ombudsman who is capable of attending to the grievances in the magnitude as may be expected in this community. It is worthwhile to learn something from the Parliamentary Commissioner in the United Kingdom. We have no parliament here as in the United Kingdom, but as my friend John BLAKER said, such a Commissioner, which is an operating arm of the members of parliament, can be duplicated here.
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Within limited scope, the ward councillors have attended to and in many cases solved personal grievances coming to their attention and they are doing this in person without such an "operating arm" by interviewing the people, writing letters, making personal telephone calls for them and occasionally making on-the-spot investigations. In a sense, they are ombudsmen, not one, but 20 of them performing the same function. Our efficiency may be improved by a commissioner or an officer working for us and upon being given access in an appropriate degree to government files.
Our sub-committees for resettlement appeals and hawkers appeals are also performing the same functions and grievances on the aspects of resettlement and hawkers may be heard. If these functions are expanded to other forms of grievances, you have your system of ombudsman in Hong Kong - ready made.
The report on the ombudsman issued by the Hong Kong branch of the Justice mentioned that the ward system of the Urban Council gives the people some place to air their grievances but it is far from satisfactory because the Members of the council are not engaged in the work full-time but only give voluntarily part of their time. I do not think that this statement is correct. The ward system is not satisfactory only because we have limited power and yet we have a very fine record of cases attended to and solved by us. I remember that an English paper said some time ago, and so said my friend Mr. Henry Hu, that the Government's C.D.O. scheme was designed to take away the ward councillors' powers. I do not think that this is true because in the course of our duties, we have very close collaboration and further, we have been working in close liaison with the C.D.O's. I remember that another paper once said that the employment of the Executive Secretary for the Umelco was a way to cash in on the work of the ward offices. I do not think that this is true either and in my view, to attend to the grievances requires more than one person. The more the better. Probably we do not need an ombudsman but we need a group of persons performing functions of the ombudsman.
(Mr. B. A. BERNACCHI left the meeting at this point).
When Mr. Michael WRIGHT, the former Director of Public Works of Hong Kong left the Colony for retirement, he said that the most unfortunate thing from his personal viewpoint was his being unable to see the slum clearance started and completed before his departure. In all standards, the slum clearance is a brilliant idea - working for the benefit of members of this community. As there is now a long delay, the scheme places a pause on all land transactions and plans for private development in the district covered by the scheme.