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PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
309
MR. CHRISTOPHER CHUNG SHU-KUN (in Cantonese): I am disappointed at Mr. PAO's reply. As far as I know, the Council is represented on the Management Committee, not the Board of Directors. Above the Management Committee there should be a Board of Directors, which makes all the final decisions. Mr. PAO has mixed them up. Mr. PAO also said that he does not know the exact management practices and is not familiar with the system of appointment and dismissal of the staff and musicians. May I ask how our supervision is going to be carried out under such circumstances? There are six Members representing the Council on the Management Committee. We are confident that they are all devoted Councillors who will carry out their duties. But just because we are already represented on the Management Committee, does it mean we could turn a blind eye to its affairs? Just imagine, some $74m has been allocated this financial year and more will be allocated next year. But in spite of the large amount of public money allocated, we know nothing about the management practices of the Orchestra! Just now Ms. Carlye Tsui expressed the wish to get in touch with the Music Director of the Orchestra to have an understanding of the way forward and management practices of the Orchestra. But Mr. Pao considered that there might be the problem of interference with its administrative autonomy and freedom of arts. My view is that being the fund provider, is the Council in no position at all to have an understanding of the situation? Such a large sum of public money is pooled from a lot of taxpayers. Why shouldn't we have the right to know more about the situation? Does mere confidence suffice to convince us that in return for the Council's enormous funding, they will definitely provide proper management? Can we invite the Music Director of the Orchestra to give us a detailed presentation? I hope Mr. PAO will give a positive and affirmative answer for my question.
The second follow-up question is about the artistic standard. We have no intention of evaluating its artistic standard, but we have the responsibility to find out its artistic achievement. We should be able to collect some information about its artistic achievement from various sources, such as comparison with other performing arts groups, the records they release, the number of performances, popularity, etc. May I ask Mr. Pao whether he minds presenting this type of information to the Select Committee when we consider granting some $70m or even more in the next financial year?
The third follow-up question. Every time when we consider the financial provision, we are given only a six to eight-page paper on the past performance of the Orchestra and the funding is always approved after brief consideration. But can we know their direction for reform? Do they have a direction with more transparency? Can they ensure more transparency for Members and the public before we consider the allocation of funds since every cent is contributed by taxpayers? When we consider the allocation of funds in future, can Mr. PAO submit a more detailed report and invite the relevant executive officer or the Artistic Director to the Council to answer our enquiries?
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