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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
for the entertainment of the people of Kowloon. In addition, Sir, may I take this opportunity to impress upon the Government the need to expedite the construction of multi-purpose halls so that every district in the Urban areas will have one for the education and entertainment of the people there.
MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN:- Mr. Chairman, before I ask the first question, may I say on behalf of the Elected Members that we would like to associate ourselves with what you have just said with regard to welcoming back the Appointed Members to the Urban Council. Certainly this Council would not continue to be in a happy and a harmonious atmosphere as it has so far been if persons like Mr. SALES, Mr. LOBO, Mr. Lo and Mr. FORSGATE had decided not to accept re-appointment. Their witticisms and remarks which are aimed as probing gestures in order to elicit the right information out of Government have certainly been very much in the public interest. I would also like to take this opportunity on behalf of the Elected Members to welcome Mr. Lo as the new Member to this Council. I am sure that he will very much enjoy being a Member of this Council, bearing in mind the happy camaraderie which we have all enjoyed together with the Official Members. I would now like to ask the first question.
QUESTIONS.
(1) MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN asked the following question:
At the August 2, 1966 Meeting of the Urban Council, I asked the following question:-
Is the Chairman aware that the several thousand people living in Aldrich Bay in Shau Kei Wan are living in the most deplorable conditions from the point of view of general sanitation and public health:
(a) What are Government's plans to resettle the people living in Aldrich Bay?
(b) What is presently being done to collect refuse, provide public latrines, eliminate the mosquito nuisance, and to offer recreation facilities for the residents and their children who were born and bred in Aldrich Bay?
Can the Chairman advise what is the up-to-date position?
THE VICE-CHAIRMAN replied as follows:
The position in Aldrich Bay has not changed significantly since 1966 when Mr. CHEONG-LEEN asked his previous question. I am informed that there are no Public Works projects at the moment which will necessitate the early clearance of the area. However, there is nothing to prevent the people living in Aldrich Bay from applying for Government Low Cost Housing.
The Urban Services Department continues to do all it can to keep the area as clean as possible. Regular inspections are made by district health staff and the mosquito control gang. As a result, mosquito breeding in the area is under control. During the past fifteen months only sixteen breeding places were discovered and these were promptly dealt with. The health staff have also given educational talks to the residents and distributed pamphlets on mosquito prevention measures.
A team of labourers (three in number) are permanently assigned to the immediate area and work from 7 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. collecting and removing refuse. In addition, a gang of five labourers under the charge of a ganger or a foreman carry out a weekly general clean-up. Eight large communal dustbins are sited at convenient places within the area for use by residents. These are cleared daily, as is all other rubbish from the premises in the area. Conveniences provided in the area have not been extended since Mr. CHEONG-LEEN asked his question in 1966. There is a properly constructed public latrine with 30 compartments and 22 showers in Nam On Street. These are situated approximately 200 yards away from the actual area. Attempts have been made, in consultation with residents' representatives, to erect additional facilities in the area, but have not met with success as the residents raised objections to such facilities being near their dwellings.
Statistics on enteric diseases are carefully watched by the Medical and Health Department, and those from Aldrich Bay are not significantly higher than the average in the Colony. I would, however, say that if at any time I considered the area to be a serious health hazard to the Colony as a whole I would not hesitate to recommend the early clearance of the inhabitants.
Members will be interested to know that, in conjunction with the City District Officer (Eastern), the Kaifong Association, the Hong Kong University Students' Union, and various interested Government departments, a special cleansing campaign was started on the 1st of this month. It will continue until the 15th. During the campaign the Cleansing Division has deployed a cleansing squad...
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