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Wednesday, October 31, 1973
Mr. Szeto welcomed the government's recent decision to allow large scale comprehensive private housing development on the Kowloon Foothills north of Lung Cheung Road. This was a departure from the "unsatisfactory established policy of piece-meal development," he said, and would produce far more satisfactory results in the context of integral planning.
He was disappointed, however, that only one tract of the land
there would be available in the near future after considerable time and
consultancy fees had been spent. He also questioned when and in what form this land sale would take place and why consultancy services were necessary when "professional expertise" was available within the Public
Works Department.
Referring to the deep-rooted problem of corruption, Mr. Szeto said the decision to set up an independent Anti-Corruption Commission had been a popular one.
To stamp out this evil, the root of the problem must be tackled by changing the attitude of the population. "This can only be achieved in the long term through education and sustained publicity, perhaps most effectively by including the subject in our school curriculae."
Effective legislation, supported by vigorous investigations and
relentless but just pursuance were also essential, he added.
In Mr. Szeto's view, the language gap was another factor which encouraged corruption because advantage was often taken of non-English- speaking people not conversant with the law and government procedures.
/"Corruption