Page 316 of 485
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
Mr. Chairman, these are my remarks.
29
Mr. Wong KinG-CHEUNG (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, today I will focus on issues concerning capital works and public health. Just now a number of Members have expressed grave concern over Urban Council's capital works. Some Members are in the opinion that money is being wasted, and some think that there must be reasons for the delays. As for me, I think that there must be solutions to the problems leading to the delays. The Capital Works Select Committee has been following up the progress of all Urban Council projects. It seems that some projects are really not going as well as expected. For example, delays in the intake of some facilities cause inconvenience to the public and tarnish the image of the Council enormously. I believe I know the crux of the problems. Having chaired the Capital Works Select Committee for quite a number of months, I have been able to identify a problem. Construction work of Urban Council projects is carried out by the Architectural Services Department, whereas coordination is done by the Planning and Development Division of the Urban Services Department. My question is: which department, the Planning and Development Division of the Urban Services Department or the Architectural Services Department, is lacking in credibility and causes the delays? Take a look at the construction of buildings, markets and shopping centres undertaken by private developers. If these projects are like Urban Council projects, those companies would have to close down because construction works drag on for too long. Why can we not introduce private sector participation into Urban Council projects? This question will have an answer in a few months. The Urban Services Department has done a lot of work at this stage and I hope some definite results can be achieved in the coming meetings. I think there are two causes for such delays. The first cause is, as Mr. Ambrose CHEUNG Wing-sum has pointed out just now, the lack of cooperation between relevant government departments when documents are circulated at the planning stage. The second cause is inclement weather during the construction period. These are the major causes, but can they be solved? We all know that large-scale projects take several years to complete. However, it is often the small-scale projects which are delayed the most. A very ordinary refuse collection point or a very ordinary park often takes 1 to 2 years to construct. I wish something could be done about this.
Last year, what displeased Urban Councillors most was the alienation of the Lai Chi Kok Park Stage II by the airport railway Mei Foo Station, which would seriously affect the unity of the Urban Council project and was a result of inadequate monitoring by the Department. The Department failed to brief the Council on this beforehand. Had it not been some Councillors who read the documents carefully, we would never have realised that the Lai Chi Kok Park would be cut across by the railway.
I also want to say a few words in connection with my speech in last year's annual debate. I spoke about the cholera vibrios problem that occurred last year. And this year, we have the Vitasoy incident. Such incidents happen every year, but
Page 316 of 485
Page 316 of 485
Page 316 of 485
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
Mr. Chairman, these are my remarks.
29
Mr. Wong KinG-CHEUNG (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, today I will focus on issues concerning capital works and public health. Just now a number of Members have expressed grave concem over Urban Council's capital works. Some Members are in the opinion that money is being wasted, and some think that there must be reasons for the delays. As for me, I think that there must be solutions to the problems leading to the delays. The Capital Works Select Committee has been following up the progress of all Urban Council projects. It seems that some projects are really not going as well as expected. For example, delays in the intake of some facilities cause inconvenience to the public and tarnish the image of the Council enormously. I believe I know the crux of the problems. Having chaired the Capital Works Select Committee for quite a number of months, I have been able to identify a problem. Construction work of Urban Council projects is carried out by the Architectural Services Department, whereas coordination is done by the Planning and Development Division of the Urban Services Department. My question is: which department, the Planning and Development Division of the Urban Services Department or the Architectural Services Department, is lacking in credibility and causes the delays? Take a look at the construction of buildings, markets and shopping centres undertaken by private developers. If these projects are like Urban Council projects, those companies would have to close down because construction works drag on for too long. Why can we not introduce private sector participation into Urban Council projects? This question will have an answer in a few months. The Urban Services Department has done a lot of work at this stage and I hope some definite results can be achieved in the coming meetings. I think there are two causes for such delays. The first cause is, as Mr. Ambrose CHEUNG Wing-sum has pointed out just now, the lack of cooperation between relevant government departments when documents are circulated at the planning stage. The second cause is inclement weather during the construction period. These are the major causes, but can they be solved? We all know that large-scale projects take several years to complete. However, it is often the small-scale projects which are delayed the most. A very ordinary refuse collection point or a very ordinary park often takes 1 to 2 years to construct. I wish something could be done about this.
Last year, what displeased Urban Councillors most was the alienation of the Lai Chi Kok Park Stage II by the airport railway Mei Foo Station, which would seriously affect the unity of the Urban Council project and was a result of inadequate monitoring by the Department. The Department failed to brief the Council on this beforehand. Had it not been some Councillors who read the documents carefully, we would never have realised that the Lai Chi Kok Park would be cut across by the railway.
I also want to say a few words in connection with my speech in last year's annual debate. I spoke about the cholera vibrios problem that occurred last year. And this year, we have the Vitasoy incident. Such incidents happen every year, but
Page 316 of 485
Page 316 of 485
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