HONG KONG PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
445
standard of the Government declining? Has the collective intelligence of the bureaucracy been rendered ineffectual? It appears that the challenges in the new SAR era are mercilessly advancing on the whole administration. The Government has attended to one thing and lost sight of another. Sometimes, there are self-contradictions. What is worrying is that the bureaucratic system of the Hong Kong Government is silently expanding. Between 1st July last year and now, the establishment of the HKSAR Government has expanded, and the efficiency of certain departments is dropping. I feel that the Government's role and position will have to be readjusted, and that it is also essential to improve its administrative standard and intelligence. The senior management of the Government will have to support and promote the nurturing of new abilities and the renewing of concepts. Before the new role is launched successfully, I feel that the decisive factor, as has been mentioned by various Councillors just now, is our leader, namely, Mr. TUNG Chee-hwa. Actually, his nickname is Seven Eleven. It seems the nickname has been bestowed upon him by the mass media. This reflects Mr. Tung's priorities in his work. Is there any room for improvement in his handling of matters? The answer is in the affirmative. Since he does not have to go through probation and his honeymoon is over, I believe the public has placed extremely high hopes on him. How will he lead the HKSAR Government towards progress?
The process from ineffectuality to efficiency and finally to omnipotence requires advancement with the times, understanding of public opinion, genuine transparency, and emphasis on credibility and a sense of responsibility. This is what we ask of the bureaucratic system. I do not think we are asking too much.
These are my remarks.
MR. CHAN Noi-yuen (in Cantonese): Mr. Chairman, in today's Annual Debate, I shall speak mainly on the Review Select Committee's reviews in connection with those appeal cases arising from the Council's refusal to issue licenses to licensees failing to comply with the Council's licensing conditions. During the past year, the Committee received 25 review applications, which included applications for succession to and issuance of fixed pitch hawker licences, renewal of provisional general restaurant licences and cases concerning market stall tenancy. The Review Select Committee has, on the basis of established mechanism, considered all the above cases carefully before passing any judgment. Therefore, I believe these cases were all handled in a fair, just and reasonable manner. Although rumours circulated a few months ago that judgment on one case was subsequently rejected by the Appeal Board, this Committee has not received any relevant information paper so far. I am not going to comment on this case now. However, I would like to brief you on the background of the above case so as to give new colleagues some idea of it. In the last session, the Urban Council approved the re-ordering arrangements for the unlicensed itinerant hawkers in Pei Ho Street, Sham Shui Po and
Page 449 of 654
Page 449 of 654
Page 449 of 654
HONG KONG PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
445
standard of the Government declining? Has the collective intelligence of the bureaucracy been rendered ineffectual? It appears that the challenges in the new SAR era are mercilessly advancing on the whole administration. The Government has attended to one thing and lost sight of another. Sometimes, there are self-contradictions. What is worrying is that the bureaucratic system of the Hong Kong Government is silently expanding. Between 1st July last year and now, the establishment of the HKSAR Government has expanded, and the efficiency of certain departments is dropping. I feel that the Government's role and position will have to be readjusted, and that it is also essential to improve its administrative standard and intelligence. The senior management of the Government will have to support and promote the nurturing of new abilities and the renewing of concepts. Before the new role is launched successfully, I feel that the decisive factor, as has been mentioned by various Councillors just now, is our leader, namely. Mr. TUNG Chee-hwa. Actually, his nickname is Seven Eleven. It seems the nickname has been bestowed upon him by the mass media. This reflects Mr. Tung's priorities in his work. Is there any room for improvement in his handling of matters? The answer is in the affirmative. Since he does not have to go through probation and his honeymoon is over, I believe the public has placed extremely high hopes on him. How will he lead the HKSAR Government towards progress?
The process from ineffectuality to efficiency and finally to omnipotence requires advancement with the times, understanding of public opinion, genuine transparency, and emphasis on credibility and a sense of responsibility. This is what we ask of the bureaucratic system. I do not think we are asking too much.
These are my remarks.
MR. CHAN Noi-Yuɛ (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, in today's Annual Debate, I shall speak mainly on the Review Select Committee's reviews in connection with those appeal cases arising from the Council's refusal to issue licenses to licensees failing to comply with the Council's licensing conditions. During the past year, the Committee received 25 review applications, which included applications for succession to and issuance of fixed pitch hawker licences, renewal of provisional general restaurant licences and cases concerning market stall tenancy. The Review Select Committee has, on the basis of established mechanism, considered all the above cases carefully before passing any judgment. Therefore, I believe these cases were all handled in a fair, just and reasonable manner. Although rumours circulated a few months ago that judgment on one case was subsequently rejected by the Appeal Board, this Committee has not received any relevant information paper so far. I am not going to comment on this case now. However, I would like to brief you on the background of the above case so as to give new colleagues some idea of it. In the last session, the Urban Council approved the re-ordering arrangements for the unlicensed itinerant hawkers in Pei Ho Street, Sham Shui Po and
Pag
Page 449 of 654
Page 449 of 654
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.