MONDAY, JULY 14, 1980
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MR POKORNY SAID HIS DEPARTMENT WOULD HELP PEOPLE IN THE NEW TERRITORIES TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THEIR LEGAL RIGHTS AND HOW BEST THEY COULD ENFORCE THESE RIGHTS THROUGH THE COURTS.
AFTER TODAY'S LAUNCHING THE VAN WENT ON A FAMILIARISATION VISIT TO THE TOWNS. IT WILL START ITS PROGRAMME IN YUEN LONG TOMORROW (TUESDAY).
GOVT TO WORK HARDER AT BUILDING NEW COMMUNITIES
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IT WAS QUICKER TO PUT UP A BUILDING THAN TO BUILD A NEW COMMUNITY AND WE WOULD HAVE TO WORK HARDER AT THIS ASPECT OF LOCAL ADMINISTRATION, OR GOVERNMENT AT A LOCAL LEVEL, THAN WE HAD IN THE PAST, THE SECRETARY FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES, MR DAVID AKERS-JONES, SAID TODAY (MONDAY) AT THE INAUGURATION OF NEW OFFICE-BEARERS OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF THE NEW TERRITORIES.
+ IT IS NOT THAT WE HAVE DONE NOTHING, BUT THAT IF WE DO NOT ACT QUICKLY NOW WE COULD BE OVERWHELMED BY NUMBERS AND WE WOULD THEN BE FACED WITH ALL THE PROBLEMS OF A DIVIDED AND PURPOSELESS SOCIETY INCREASING LAWLESSNESS, VANDALISM, LITTER, DRUGS AND SO FORTH, MR AKERS-JONES SAID.
MR AKERS-JONES SAID IT WAS QUITE POSSIBLE FOR THE POPULATION OF ONE OF THE NEW TOWNS TO INCREASE BY 50 000 IN THE COURSE OF SIX MONTHS AND THEN ANOTHER 50 000 IN THE FOLLOWING SIX MONTHS.
SOMEHOW, WE HAD TO DEVELOP OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICES SO THEY COULD BEGIN AND COULD KEEP UP WITH THE FORMATION OF THE BASIC ORGANISATIONS WHICH STARTED TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER IN OUR NEW COMMUNITIES.
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THE FIRST STEP WAS TO BRING HOUSEHOLDS TOGETHER IN COMMON CONCERN FOR THE BUILDING IN WHICH THEY LIVED ITS CLEANLINESS AND SECURITY.
THE ORGANISATION WHICH HAD THIS OBJECTIVE WAS THE MUTUAL AID COMMITTEE.
MORE THAN 900 MUTUAL AID COMMITTEES IN PUBLIC HOUSING ESTATES AND PRIVATE BUILDINGS WERE FORMED THROUGHOUT THE NEW TERRITORIES AND NEW COMMITTEES WERE BEING FORMED EVERY WEEK.
A SECOND-TIER ORGANISATION BROUGHT THE CHAIRMEN OF THESE COMMITTEES TOGETHER INTO AREA COMMITTEES.
THEN, AT DISTRICT OR TOWN LEVEL, THERE WAS THE DISTRICT BOARD (PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS THE DISTRICT ADVISORY BOARD) IN WHICH A WIDE CROSS-SECTION MET TOGETHER WITH OFFICIALS TO GIVE ADVICE AND DRAW ATTENTION TO LOCAL MATTERS OF GENERAL CONCERN.
THE GOVERNMENT