SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 1984

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PAVING THE WAY FOR GREATER PEOPLE'S ROLE

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THE DISTRICT BOARDS, THE NEW REGIONAL COUNCIL AND PROPOSALS IN THE GREEN PAPER ON REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT ALL SERVE TO ENABLE PEOPLE'S PARTICIPATION IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF HONG KONG.

THIS WAS STATED BY A PRINCIPAL ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE CITY AND NEW TERRITORIES ADMINISTRATION, MR C.M. LEUNG, IN A MESSAGE TO THE SEMI-FINAL OF THE 18-DISTRICT AMATEUR SINGING CONTEST HELD TONIGHT (SATURDAY).

AND THE WORK OF THE DISTRICT BOARDS, HE SAID, WOULD PROVIDE A FIRM BASE FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT SYSTEM.

IN THIS CONNECTION, MR LEUNG URGED THE PUBLIC TO SUPPORT THE SYSTEM BY REGISTERING AS VOTERS AND GOING TO THE POLLS AT NEXT YEAR'S DISTRICT BOARD ELECTIONS.

THE SIX-WEEK REGISTRATION WILL START ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15, AND HE SAID: +YOUR SUPPORT IS INDISPENSABLE FOR ITS SUCCESS. IT IS ONLY THROUGH PARTICIPATION AND INVOLVEMENT THAT WE CAN BUIL A BETTER COMMUNITY.+

HE NOTED THAT THE OBJECTIVE OF THE SONG CONTEST, APART FROM DEVELOPING THE CONTESTANTS' INTEREST AND POTENTIAL IN SINGING, WAS TO PROMOTE DISTRICT SPIRIT AND FOSTER PARTICIPATION IN DISTRICT EVENTS.

+ IN FACT, AN EVEN MORE POSITIVE WAY TO SUPPORT YOUR DISTRICT IS TO TAKE PART IN DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION.

+THE SETTING UP OF DISTRICT BOARDS HAS ENABLED LOCAL RESIDENTS TO ADVISE THE GOVERNMENT ON THE PROVISION AND USE OF LOCAL FACILITIES AND SERVICES.+

AFTER TWO YEARS' WORK, MR LEUNG SAID THE BOARDS HAD PROVE. EFFECTIVE IN REFLECTING THE VIEWS OF THE PUBLIC ON GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND HAD CONTRIBUTED TO THE BETTER MANAGEMENT OF DISTR AFFAIRS.

+AFTER THE ELECTION NEXT YEAR, THE DISTRICT BOARDS WILL BE GIVEN AN EVEN MORE REPRESENTATIVE STATUS BY HAVING UNOFFICIAL CHAIRMEN AND AN INCREASED NUMBER OF ELECTED MEMBERS,+ HE SAID.

+THE SETTING UP OF REGIONAL COUNCIL IN 1985 WILL WITNESS ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT STEP TOWARDS GREATER PUBLIC PARTICIPATI IN THE FORMULATION OF REGIONAL POLICIES.

+ THE REGIONAL COUNCIL, WHICH WILL BE THE COUNTERPART OF URBAN COUNCIL IN THE NEW TERRITORIES, WILL HAVE A MAJORITY NUMBER OF ELECTED MEMBERS AND WILL PERFORM A VALUABLE ROLE I PROVIDING AND CO-ORDINATING POLICIES AND SERVICES.+

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/IN ADDIT

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