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the general public to have confidence that their complaints will be dealt with efficiently and satisfactorily. The Commissioner for Administration should have a special status to oversee the work done by all Government Officials. He must ensure that the functionings of various Government Departments are properly monitored. Only by having such powers will he be able to enhance the efficiency of the Civil Service to tie in with the political review and changes that are forthcoming. He should be able to prevent the abuse of powers by government departments and to preserve the rights and the privileges of the general public. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support the motion.
MR. FREDERICK K. K. FUNG (in Cantonese):- Mr. Chairman, as regards the consultative document 'Redress of Grievances', I have the following views~~
First, I am totally for the setting up of an independent Commissioner for Administration to be responsible for investigating into allegations of maladministration by government departments which may include over-rigidity or narrow-mindedness in defining policies, shirking of duties by government departments, dereliction of duties and abuse of powers by government officials and their deliberately creating problems for some members of the public.
My support for creating the 'Commissioner for Administration' is based on the following
1.
Government is becoming larger in organization with fine division of labour. Faults by government officials in the implementation of policies, whether intentional or not, are sure to affect some members of the public. Thus western democracies have independent authorities to check the mistakes made by government departments in their dealings with the public. There are thus channels through which the public seek redress of their grievances. In Sweden, there are ombudsmen and in Britain there is the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration. We may well draw on the experience of these countries to set up a Commissioner independent of government departments to deal with complaints against maladministration and make recommendations for improvement.
2. Looking at the circumstances of Hong Kong, I feel there is need for creating a Commissioner for Administration, to make up for inadequacies in existing avenues of complaint and to ensure that such existing avenues as, in particular, UMELCO, perform their functions in a more effective way. What then are the inadequacies in existing avenues of complaint?
(a) UMELCO is, as mentioned in paragraph 7 of the consultative document, 'the apex of a pyramid of avenues of appeal'. It not only hears public views and comments on public matters, but also handles complaints by the public against government policies, decisions and maladministration. Thus its work is very multitudinous. At present, the UMELCO office on receiving a complaint
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usually refers it to the department concerned and waits for a reply. Members seldom look into the circumstances surrounding a case, still less exercise their powers to call for relevant papers or government officials. Thus although UMELCO has sufficient powers to investigate into cases alleging maladministration, the way it works makes it difficult to handle cases effectively. And as Members have heavy public duties to attend to, they rarely take the initiative to investigate a case, unless it is a very serious one. Take for example, several years ago a group of Housing Managers complained to the authorities concerned of structural defects in Kwai Fong Estate and of suspected corruption. But they were not heeded, and it was not until serious structural defects surfaced recently in some of our public housing estates that the authorities started to look squarely at the problem and UMELCO persisted in its investigation. If Hong Kong had had a Commissioner for Administration, the case would have been investigated at an early stage and would not have developed to such a mess.
(b) As regards the Urban and Regional Councils and the District Boards, the consultative document mentions that in 1985 Urban Councillors altogether handled more than 7,000 cases and District Board members more than 2,400, most of which were resolved satisfactorily at the district level. The point I wish to make is the Urban and Regional Councils and the District Boards while handling public complaints face a number of limitations.
(1) Their members meet the public on a voluntary basis. For many of them, due to the shortage of full-time staff, it is difficult to follow up cases.
(2) As there is no established system for the handling of cases, the success of a channel very largely depends on the enthusiasm of members and attitude of the government officials concerned. So far as I know, a case which one member finds difficulties in handling may be handled quite smoothly by another. This is to say the human factor plays a very important part.
(3) As members do not have access to relevant files and papers, even if they suspect maladministration by government departments, they do not have the means to verify their suspicion and take action.
(c) The consultative document mentions other avenues of complaint such as the Courts, the ICAC and District Offices. But for one thing, they are not set up for the purpose of dealing with allegations of maladministration; for another, the persons handling the cases being public officers, will have difficulties acting independently. Besides, the general public may not be able to make use of the Court
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the general public to have confidence that their complaints will be dealt with efficiently and satisfactorily. The Commissioner for Administration should have a special status to oversee the work done by all Government Officials. He must ensure that the functionings of various Government Departments are properly monitored. Only by having such powers will be able to enhance the efficiency of the Civil Service to tie in with the political review and changes that are forthcoming. He should be able to prevent the abuse use of powers by government departments and to preserve the rights and the privileges of the general public. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support the motion.
MR. FREDERICK K. K. FUNG (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, as regards the consultative document 'Redress of Grievances', I have the following views~~
First, I am totally for the setting up of an independent Commissioner for Administration to be responsible for investigating into allegations of mal- administration by government departments which may include over-rigidity or narrow-mindedness in defining policies, shirking of duties by government departments, dereliction of duties and abuse of powers by government officials and their deliberately creating problems for some members of the public.
My support for creating the 'Commissioner for Administration' is based on the following
1.
Government is becoming larger in organization with fine division of labour. Faults by government officials in the implementation of policies, whether intentional or not, are sure to affect some members of the public. Thus western democracies have independent authorities to check the mistakes made by government departments in their dealings with the public. There are thus channels through which the public seek redress of their grievances. In Sweden, there are ombudsmen and in Britain there is the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration. We may well draw on the experience of these countries to set up a Commissioner independent of government departments to deal with complaints against maladministration and make recommendations for improvement.
2. Looking at the circumstances of Hong Kong, I feel there is need for creating a Commissioner for Administration, to make up for in- adequacies in existing avenues of complaint and to ensure that such existing avenues as, in particular, UMELCO, perform their functions in a more effective way. What then are the inadequacies in existing avenues of complaint?
(a) UMELCO is, as mentioned in paragraph 7 of the consultative document, 'the apex of a pyramid of avenues of appeal'. It not only hears public views and comments on public matters, but also handles complaints by the public against government policies, decisions and maladministration. Thus its work is very multitu- dinous. At present, the UMELCO office on receiving a complaint
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usually refers it to the department concerned and waits for a reply. Members seldom look into the circumstances surrounding a case, still less to exercise their powers to call for relevant papers or government officials. Thus although UMELCO has sufficient powers to investigate into cases alleging maladministration, the way it works makes it difficult to handle cases effectively. And as Members have heavy public duties to attend to, they rarely take the initiative to investigate a case, unless it is a very serious one. Take for example, several years ago a group of Housing Managers complained to the authorities concerned of structural defects in Kwai Fong Estate and of suspected corruption. But they were not heeded, and it was not until serious structural defects surfaced recently in some of our public housing estates that the authorities started to look squarely at the problem and UMELCO persisted in its investigation. If Hong Kong has had a Commissioner for Administration, the case would have been investigated at an early stage and would not have developed to such a mess.
(b) As regards the Urban and Regional Councils and the District Boards, the consultative document mentions that in 1985 Urban Councillors altogether handled more than 7 000 cases and District Board members more than 2 400, most of which were resolved satisfactorily at the district level. The point I wish to make is the Urban and Regional Councils and the District Boards while handling public complaints face a number of limitations.
(1) Their members meet the public on a voluntary basis. For many of them, due to the shortage of full-time staff, it is difficult to follow up cases.
(2) As there is no established system for the handling of cases, the success of a channel very largely depends on the enthusiasm of members and attitude of the government officials concerned. So far as I know, a case which one member finds difficulties in handling may be handled quite smoothly by another. This is to say the human factor plays a very important part.
(3) As members do not have access to relevant files and papers, even if they suspect maladministration by government depart- ments, they do not have the means to verify their suspicion and take action.
(c) The consultative document mentions other avenues of complaint such as the Courts, the ICAC and District Offices. But for one thing, they are not set up for the purpose of dealing with allegations of maladministration; for another, the persons handling the cases being public officers, will have difficulties to act independently. Besides, the general public may not be able to make use of the Court
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.