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HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
HON. MR. S. W. TS'O.-Your Excellency,-I rise to second the amendment proposed by the Hon. Dr. Kotewall, Senior Chinese Member of Council, to the Motion before us to-day.
The amendment just proposed by my honourable colleague is not at variance with the Motion of the Hon. Colonial Secretary in principle, but merely asks to allow the rider main system to abolish itself, in 2 years' time by the gradual installation of meters, which, my Chinese colleagues and I consider, is the best mode of attaining the object, which the Government desires to effect, without causing the hardship and inconvenience to the people living in the rider main districts which immediate abolition would.
It is very unfortunate that the Government did not take the Chinese community into its confidence when it decided to abolish the rider main system in February last and took steps to disconnect certain houses from the rider main. If the Government had prepared a scheme beforehand showing the manner in which the Government proposed to convert the rider main system into a universal meterage system and let the Chinese go thoroughly into the matter, no doubt a modus operandi would have been found satisfactory to the Chinese who are chiefly concerned. As it is, the Chinese did not know what the Government had done or proposed to go until the subject was brought before the Council at its last Meeting and are consequently much concerned.
The Hon. Dr. Kotewall in his speech has fully and clearly stated the Chinese views on the subject. I do not propose therefore to adduce further arguments against the assumption that the rider main system is wasteful or that the meter system can prevent waste of water. But if the rider main system is a wasteful system, the Government can surely produce better proof than it has done. For so far as I know the system of water supply in this Colony is served by two means: metered or unmetered service. The quantity of water supplied by meters either for domestic use or for trade purposes is known and the balance of consumption must have been consumed by the rider main or by other uses known to the Government.
With regard to the monthly reports issued by the Water Authorities of the total water consumption in Hong Kong and in Kowloon and of the quantity of water consumed per head per day, 1 find that the consumption per head per day is calculated on an estimated population much lower than that given by the Census. According to Para. 29 of Sessional Paper No. 4 of 1932, the population of the Colony, excluding the New Territories, is estimated at 750,846, while the population estimated for the purposes of calculating the water consumption per head per day is on the average, 681,377. I made this out from the water consumption reports issued by the Water Authorities from January up to August, 1932, that is, for 8 months. It means a difference
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