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Mr. Kam Nai-WAI (in Cantonese):-First, we find that the papers presented by the Department often fail to provide the Council with full information for consideration. Take the installation of air-conditioning systems in markets as an example. The Urban Services Department has conducted surveys but failed to provide us with full information. As a result, the recommendation of their papers is to ask us not to consider the installation of air-conditioning systems in markets.
Second, the Urban Services Department does not offer Members with the best options. Earlier a number of Members mentioned the Central Library incident. The former Director of Urban Services came up with the best design of the Central Library for the Council's consideration and it was adopted by the Council then. However, when the new Director assumed office, perhaps due to personal views, she gave us another design she thought was the best. What she did has put the Council in a very embarrassing position. In fact, the information provided by our chief officials on technical aspects gives us the most important data support. Unfortunately, different Directors will have different approaches. As a result, the Council may not be able to get the best information in hand when making policy decisions.
Third, there are delays in implementation of the Council's policy. The Council has discussed, for example, street cleansing since 1996 but the Department has not implemented the policy yet.
Fourth, the Director of Urban Services sometimes attended functions that do not befit her role, such as the ribbon-cutting ceremony of restaurants. As Director of the Department and as head of the licensing authority, is it proper for her to attend such functions? Furthermore, there was also suggestion as to whether it was proper for the Director to have frequent duty visits within such a short time since she assumed office.
Sixth, I think the majority of Members would agree that the existing Council's relation with the Urban Services Department, probably with the Director in particular, is strained. Will there be any reasons behind? I would not speculate here. But the truth is, this strained relation between the Council and the Department will, to a certain extent, affect co-operation. In my view, the existing system should allow both the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Council to write the performance appraisal report of the Director. But of course, we all know that the final decision rests with the Civil Service Bureau or the Chief Secretary for Administration. I hope that the Chairman and Vice-Chairman will incorporate in the Director's appraisal report this year the adverse remarks that Members made earlier. The Council is not empowered to appoint or remove any incompetent officials of the Urban Services Department; this is something we could not do. But under the system of “One Municipal Council and One Municipal Services Department", we certainly have to keep in view how we are going to deal with this. Whether there will be any Municipal Councils in the future will depend on the final decision of the
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PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
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Mr. Kam Nal-WAI (in Cantonese):-First, we find that the papers presented by the Department often fail to provide the Council with full information for consideration. Take the installation of air-conditioning systems in markets as an example. The Urban Services Department has conducted surveys but failed to provide us with full information. As a result, the recommendation of their papers is to ask us not to consider the installation of air-conditioning systems in markets.
Second, the Urban Services Department does not offer Members with the best options. Earlier a number of Members mentioned the Central Library incident. The former Director of Urban Services came up with the best design of the Central Library for the Council's consideration and it was adopted by the Council then. However, when the new Director assumed office, perhaps due to personal views, she gave us another design she thought was the best. What she did has put the Council in a very embarrassing position. In fact, the information provided by our chief officials on technical aspects gives us the most important data support. Unfortunately, different Directors will have different approaches. As a result, the Council may not be able to get the best information in hand when making policy decisions.
Third, there are delays in implementation of the Council's policy. The Council has discussed, for example, street cleansing since 1996 but the Department has not implemented the policy yet.
Fourth, the Director of Urban Services sometimes attended functions that do not befit her role, such as the ribbon-cutting ceremony of restaurants. As Director of the Department and as head of the licensing authority, is it proper for her to attend such functions? Furthermore, there was also suggestion as to whether it was proper for the Director to have frequent duty visits within such a short time since she assumed office.
Sixth, I think the majority of Members would agree that the existing Council's relation with the Urban Services Department, probably with the Director in particular, is strained. Will there be any reasons behind? I would not speculate here. But the truth is, this strained relation between the Council and the Department will, to a certain extent, affect co-operation. In my view, the existing system should allow both the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the Council to write the performance appraisal report of the Director. But of course, we all know that the final decision rests with the Civil Service Bureau or the Chief Secretary for Administration. I hope that the Chairman and Vice- Chairman will incorporate in the Director's appraisal report this year the adverse remarks that Members made earlier. The Council is not empowered to appoint or remove any incompetent officials of the Urban Services Department; this is something we could not do. But under the system of “One Municipal Council and One Municipal Services Department", we certainly have to keep in view how we are going to deal with this. Whether there will be any Municipal Councils in the future will depend on the final decision of the
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