XN000022-1991-03-18 — Page 10

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MONDAY, MARCH 18, 1991

STRONGER SANCTIONS AGAINST UNAUTHORISED BUILDING WORKS

*

STRONGER SANCTIONS UNAUTHORISED BUILDING WORKS

WILL BE APPLIED TO TACKLE THE PROBLEM OF

(UBW) IN HONG KONG.

AT

THIS WAS STATED BY THE ACTING PRINCIPAL GOVERNMENT BUILDING SURVEYOR OF THE BUILDINGS AND LANDS DEPARTMENT, MR CHENG WEI-DART, A PRESS CONFERENCE TODAY (MONDAY},

MR CHENG SAID A REVIEW OF THE APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM OF UBW BEEN CONDUCTED IN FACE OF THE SPATE OF MAJOR AND MINOR BUILDING COLLAPSES THAT OCCURRED IN THE LATTER PART OF 1990.

HAD

IT HAD BECOME ABUNDANTLY CLEAR AS A RESULT OF THE REVIEW THAT THE USE OF STRONGER SANCTIONS AGAINST UBW WAS JUSTIFIED, HE SAID.

"BUILDING SAFETY IS OUR MAIN CONCERN," MR CHENG SAID. "ILLEGAL BUILDING ACTIVITY IS A MAJOR FACTOR TO BE CONSIDERED," HE ADDED.

SAFETY,

APART FROM OTHER MEASURES DESIGNED TO ENFORCE BUILDING TWO IMPORTANT CHANGES IN THE ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURE SHOULD BE MADE ANNOUNCED FOR PUBLIC INFORMATION, MR CHENG SAID.

AND

THESE TWO CHANGES ARE:

PROSECUTION OF

STEPPED UP, AND

OFFENDERS FOR CARRYING OUT UBW SHOULD

BE

STRUCTURES WHICH PROJECT OVER BUSY THOROUGHFARES AND POSE A GREATER DANGER то THE GENERAL PUBLIC SHOULD ВЕ FIRST DEMOLISHED.

MR CHENG EMPHASISED THAT THE NEED HAD BECOME MORE URGENT ΤΟ PROMOTE RESPECT FOR THE BUILDING LAW AND TO ENCOURAGE COMPLIANCE WITH BUILDING SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.

THE DECISION

HAD BEEN TAKEN, HE SAID, THAT WHEN CONSIDERING WHETHER OR NOT ΤΟ

INSTITUTE PROSECUTION PROCEEDINGS UNDER THE BUILDINGS ORDINANCE, THE BUILDING AUTHORITY WOULD ACCORD THE HIGHEST PRIORITY то THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES OF PERSONS WHO COMMITTED AN OFFENCE UNDER THE BUILDINGS ORDINANCE:

(A)

REPEATED OFFENDERS;

(B)

(C)

(D)

OFFENDERS WHOSE UBW ARE EXCESSIVE IN NATURE OR SCALE AND IN BLATANT DISREGARD FOR THE BUILDING LAW OR THE SAFETY OF THE PUBLIC;

OFFRNDERS WHOSE UBW ARE UNDER CONSTRUCTION;

OFFENDERS WHO DISREGARD A "CEASE WORKS ORDER" ISSUED UNDER SECTION 23 OF THE BUILDINGS ORDINANCE;

/(E) OFFENDERS WHO

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