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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
141
MR. CHRISTOPHER CHUNG SHU-KUN (in Cantonese):-The purpose of the procedural motion was to refer the matter to relevant Select Committees so that we can have sufficient time and information to discuss how to carry it out. Nobody is objecting to the improvement of service hours of libraries, museums, and even any Urban Council facilities. But the Urban Council Monthly Meeting is not a working meeting; it is a meeting where by-laws are endorsed. This meeting is not a rubber stamp, you could raise objection and nobody will aim a gun at you. If we have to discuss every matter at the Monthly Meeting, we would need a lot of information and a lot of time. Then there will be no need for the Select Committees to hold meetings, and the Monthly Meeting will probably last several days and nights instead of one afternoon. I think that as an efficient Council, we should refer the matter to the Working Groups or Select Committees for detailed study and then the various options worked out would then be discussed and voted at the Monthly Meetings. This kind of motions has to be as detailed as possible, and it may lengthen the time and may have an impact on the staff. Now all Select Committees have received this letter and there is conflict between staff and the staff associations. As such, we have to convince them and try to find out a remedial method. I wonder if it is possible to resolve all these at a Monthly Meeting. I think the question should be referred back to the Select Committees, which would study the matter in detail and then work out the improvement measures. Thus, I think Mr. Albert Lai's motion to defer the discussion is very reasonable.
CHAIRMAN (in Cantonese):-I would like to respond to the comments Councillors have made previously. Actually in her speech concerning the amended motion, Miss Ada Wong Ying-kay had put forward some concrete proposals. For example, she suggested that the Science Museum should be opened at 11.00 am on Sundays. This is a concrete proposal rather than a directional proposal. If the content of the motion is just like what Mr. Chan Kwok-leung said, then I would not have objected to it. However, Miss Ada WONG Ying-kay also proposed to extend the opening hours of the Museums on Tuesday to Thursday so as to match the performance time at Hong Kong Cultural Centre and she also talked about the Science Museum; these are all instructional proposals. Since we do not have Departmental officers attending the Monthly Meeting, we cannot obtain any background information even though we know how we could obtain some, so we are unable to make any decision. However, we can always make our decisions at the SCWC meetings. Unlike the monthly meeting which is held only once a month, the SCWC meeting is held bi-weekly. We are not trying to evade our responsibility to make decisions. It is just because at the SCWC meetings we have departmental staff in attendance and they can provide us with any background information required for the discussions, but at the Monthly Meetings, no such service is provided. Therefore, the Monthly Meeting is a little bit different from the SCWC meeting. Here at the Monthly Meeting we can only concentrate
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