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PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
Question 5 was put to local leaders. I must stress that these 1,500-odd copies of questionnaire were not collected from members of the general public, but were from chairmen and members of Area Committees, chairmen of Mutual Aid Committees, chairmen of Owners' Corporations, District Board members, local community leaders. The views they have given should not be regarded as those of the general public. They should not be regarded as ignorant views.
Question 5 in Annex A asks,
'On the assumption that the Government assumes direct responsibility for food safety and environmental hygiene, which of the following options is the most appropriate in discharging the remaining functions?'
62% of the respondents supported the retention of Municipal Councils for the execution of the remaining duties while only 17% supported the dissolution of the Municipal Councils with the remaining duties being taken up by new organizations. The ratio was 62 to 17 and yet the Consultation Report describes it as ‘diverse views'.
I would ask Members to comment whether this is foul play, with the questionnaire and the findings prepared all by oneself. The only thing we should praise the Government for is that it is brazen enough and frank enough to publicize the findings of such a questionnaire survey. As for the other aspects, I am hesitant to praise it. It is stated twice that 'views are diverse', but is it the case?
A leaflet was prepared by Mr. WONG Kwok-hing, Chairman of the Public Relation Sub-Group on 'Review of District Organizations', listing out clearly the views of all the Area Committees. Are the views diverse? No. It is obvious that only the minority is in favour of the dissolution of the two Municipal Councils. The majority supports the retention or amalgamation of the two Councils. I believe Members have received this leaflet, which is going to be distributed to the public too. I have talked to you about the remark of 'views are diverse'. The views are not diverse. The only thing is that the Government has struck out those obvious views and labeled them as diverse views'. I consider this to be foul play.
The second point is about the submissions of different organizations. Those from the arts sector are the most interesting. Let me quote sub-paragraph (h) on page 7.
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*Submissions from the arts and sports community in general were discontented about the fragmentation of responsibilities, the lack of effective co-ordination and ineffective distribution of resources in the arts and sports fields.'
The Report first relates that submissions were received from different organizations and then describes the present situation, expressing dissatisfaction over the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the two Municipal
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