19
A. Gammara ቢ.
Original at:
HKL 18/12
This Copy fork
information_enly/Action on
Para(s) 596
Mr. Carter
+12
Lord Shepherd's Visit to Hong Kong
June 1969
Reorganisation of Local Administration
and related matters
Lord Shepherd had separate discussions on this subject with the Urban Council, with UMELCO and with the Governor accompanied by his senior advisers. He also spent a day studying the City District Officer scheme during which he had the opportunity to talk about these problems with the Secretary for Home Affairs and many of his staff. Lord Shepherd approached the problem.not strictly as one of local government reform but rather as the need to find means of enabling people to participate more fully in decision-taking by government and of improving communications in each direction between government and the people. Rather than record the detailed discussions I give below what I
believe to be the outcome of the various issues.
CDO Scheme
2.
Lord Shepherd was most impressed by the excellent start which the scheme had made and by the very high quality of the CDOs themselves, most of whom are Chinese( (We heard some complaints from other quarters that these men had been creamed off other departments to an unjustifiable extent.). It was however recognised that the job was an extremely demanding one involving great strain, and that it would be unwise to ask anyone to undertake it for more than two or
three years.
Some people thought it ought to be possible to recruit local people above the normal recruiting age for this type of work. Praise for the scheme was fairly general though some of the older and more conservative members of UMELCO were inclined to be more cautious.
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY No.51
- 4 JUL 1969
HAKKI/14
PA
ANG
9.7..
69
CONFIDENTIAL
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