HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
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Yacht Club and all these sports bodies belong only to the elites and the cream who only speak on behalf of the affluent and privileged groups. There is no localisation from the top, from the chairman down to the Executive Director. Therefore, the local Hong Kong culture is very alien to them and all the various accusations they made have taken no consideration of the mentality of the Hong Kong community.
The second point I want to address is on the role of ex-officio membership. My appointment as an ex-officio membership should be read as 'Chairman of Urban Council or his representative'. So I do not have to attend personally and I can appoint my representative as I like within the Council. I see my role as an ex-officio member that while attending the meeting, if there is any doubt about Urban Council's existing policies, I, together with the Director of Urban Services in attendance, will explain the Urban Council's existing policies to help them to formulate their activities. Secondly, my role is to offer whatever facilities we have available to help them to launch activities and of course to bring back some of the matters which may have relations with the Urban Council activities and/or its jurisdictions. But of course, in some major issues, I will suggest not to just rely on me or my representative and the DUS to report back to the Council. In the future, I propose that with major issues that may concern the Urban Council, or that may infringe on Urban Council's duty, I will suggest that representatives from SDB should make a full presentation to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council for consultation rather than to relate the message through me as my memory may slip.
The next point I want to address is about the persistent request to have a co-opted membership from the SDB in the Recreation Select Committee of the Urban Council. This issue was extensively discussed and it was concluded that at this stage we do not need any co-opted memberships as we have no other co-opted memberships in all our other Select Committees. With the Council of 40, we think we are capable and as the experience pointed out, we have been capable without the need of any co-opted memberships. If they want to share our discussions in formulating our policies, they are all welcomed in our public gallery which is accessible to them. Major decisions made can be learned from our news releases and the press.
The next point is about the publicly provided and managed facilities as against privately owned and managed sport clubs. These venue-based sports clubs as pointed out by various members are utilising our facilities in the districts. All along, our Council, together with the department, has been informing groups with similar sports interest on a venue basis to promote more loyalty and cohesion to the clubs. At the earliest stage, it was in line with the Governor's policy in the sports development which followed the trend in the western countries. Recreational leases in prime sites were granted in the centres of communities. Some of the examples are the Hong Kong Cricket Club, the Hong Kong Football Club in Happy Valley, the South China Athletic Association, Club Recreation, Indian Club and Hong Kong Country Club. Some of which I am members. But I consider undeservedly to be the privileged
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