1998 — Page 424

Urban Council Proceedings 市政局議事錄 All AI Reviewed
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412

PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

MR. FRANCIS TANG CI-10 (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman,

Today is the last Annual Conventional Debate held before 2000 and is also the time for us to speak our mind freely. Recently, we often heard some people say that they have a clear conscience and we have also been asked if we really have a clear conscience. After thinking about this carefully and making a self-examination, I wondered who can have a clear conscience except the God I believe in or the Gods of other religions. Even the sages make mistakes. The most important thing is we can rectify those mistakes.

I appreciate very much what Mr. LAM Man-fai has just said. Over these years, we could often find the right answers to various matters through heated debates, just because this was a democratic council. The conclusion reached may not be acceptable to some other people, but we have followed a democratic system, which was what the public expected us to do when they elected us. Although different political parties and people may be dissatisfied with the outcome, we have, after all, devoted open and fair discussions to the issues. Today, I don't know what fate will befall the Council. After I have given my remarks, there may be some feedback tomorrow and some criticism may pass on me. But it is strange that there are people, both inside and outside the Council and include the media representatives here today and fellow colleagues, who share the view of the Government that the quality of councillors is very poor! They cited examples such as the subscription of shares, in which I was also involved. However, if the crux of the problem lies in the quality of councillors, the decision as to retain the Council or not should best be made by the voters. Under no circumstances should the Council be scrapped in a high-handed manner. This is a matter of the fundamental problem. If there are problems with the quality of councillors, it should be decided by the voters as to whether an election has to be held again. It is not the Council itself which has problems. The Council provides a mechanism for the voters to elect their representatives to speak for them, thereby policies will be formulated. Of our three-tier councils, which but the Urban Council has been bestowed with real power to formulate policies for implementation by the Government?

Some members of political parties which have fewer Council seats have publicly called for decentralization and the formation of more municipal councils. I hope Mr. Tim S. Manuel CHAN will excuse me for speaking bluntly as he is one of those who have made such a call. But when he realized the conspiracy of the Government that no power would whatsoever be devolved, he was disillusioned and pointed out that it was wrong for the Government to dissolve the Urban Council. Nevertheless, some people still maintained that the Urban Councillors themselves are responsible for the demise of the Council. To this, I totally disagree. If it is a matter of Members' quality, the problem may involve another Council. What I have to say is that in the

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Page 424 of 606 Page 424 of 606 1 606 412 PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL Thank you, Mr. Chairman. MR. FRANCIS TANG CI-10 (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, Today is the last Annual Conventional Debate held before 2000 and is also the time for us to speak our mind freely. Recently, we often heard some people say that they have a clear conscience and we have also been asked if we really have a clear conscience. After thinking about this carefully and making a self-examination, I wondered who can have a clear conscience except the God I believe in or the Gods of other religions. Even the sages make mistakes. The most important thing is we can rectify those mistakes. I appreciate very much what Mr. LAM Man-fai has just said. Over these years, we could often find the right answers to various matters through heated debates, just because this was a democratic council. The conclusion reached may not be acceptable to some other people, but we have followed a democratic system, which was what the public expected us to do when they elected us. Although different political parties and people may be dissatisfied with the outcome, we have, after all, devoted open and fair discussions to the issues. Today, I don't know what fate will befall the Council. After I have given my remarks, there may be some feedback tomorrow and some criticism may pass on me. But it is strange that there are people, both inside and outside the Council and include the media representatives here today and fellow colleagues, who share the view of the Government that the quality of councillors is very poor! They cited examples such as the subscription of shares, in which I was also involved. However, if the crux of the problem lies in the quality of councillors, the decision as to retain the Council or not should best be made by the voters. Under no circumstances should the Council be scrapped in a high-handed manner. This is a matter of the fundamental problem. If there are problems with the quality of councillors, it should be decided by the voters as to whether an election has to be held again. It is not the Council itself which has problems. The Council provides a mechanism for the voters to elect their representatives to speak for them, thereby policies will be formulated. Of our three-tier councils, which but the Urban Council has been bestowed with real power to formulate policies for implementation by the Government? Some members of political parties which have fewer Council seats have publicly called for decentralization and the formation of more municipal councils. I hope Mr. Tim S. Manuel CHAN will excuse me for speaking bluntly as he is one of those who have made such a call. But when he realized the conspiracy of the Government that no power would whatsoever be devolved, he was disillusioned and pointed out that it was wrong for the Government to dissolve the Urban Council. Nevertheless, some people still maintained that the Urban Councillors themselves are responsible for the demise of the Council. To this, I totally disagree. If it is a matter of Members' quality, the problem may involve another Council. What I have to say is that in the
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Page 424 of 606 Page 424 of 606 1 606 412 PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL Thank you, Mr. Chairman. MR. FRANCIS TANG CI-10 (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, Today is the last Annual Conventional Debate held before 2000 and is also the time for us to speak our mind freely. Recently, we often heard some people say that they have a clear conscience and we have also been asked if we really have a clear conscience. After thinking about this carefully and making a self- examination, I wondered who can have a clear conscience except the God I believe in or the Gods of other religions. Even the sages make mistakes. The most important thing is we can rectify those mistakes. I appreciate very much what Mr. LAM Man-fai has just said. Over these years, we could often find the right answers to various matters through heated debates, just because this was a democratic council. The conclusion reached may not be acceptable to some other people, but we have followed a democratic system, which was what the public expected us to do when they elected us. Although different political parties and people may be dissatisfied with the outcome, we have, after all, devoted open and fair discussions to the issues. Today, I don't know what fate will befall the Council. After I have given my remarks, there may be some feedback tomorrow and some criticism may pass on me. But it is strange that there are people, both inside and outside the Council and include the media representatives here today and fellow colleagues, who share the view of the Government that the quality of councillors is very poor! They cited examples such as the subscription of shares, in which I was also involved. However, if the crux of the problem lies in the quality of councillors, the decision as to retain the Council or not should best be made by the voters. Under no circumstances should the Council be scrapped in a high-handed manner. This is a matter of the fundamental problem. If there are problems with the quality of councillors, it should be decided by the voters as to whether an election has to be held again. It is not the Council itself which has problems. The Council provides a mechanism for the voters to elect their representatives to speak for them, thereby policies will be formulated. Of our three-tier councils, which but the Urban Council has been bestowed with real power to formulate policies for implementation by the Government? Some members of political parties which have fewer Council seats have publicly called for decentralization and the formation of more municipal councils. I hope Mr. Tim S. Manuel CHAN will excuse me for speaking bluntly as he is one of those who have made such a call. But when he realized the conspiracy of the Government that no power would whatsoever be devolved, he was disillusioned and pointed out that it was wrong for the Government to dissolve the Urban Council. Nevertheless, some people still maintained that the Urban Councillors themselves are responsible for the demise of the Council. To this, I totally disagree. If it is a matter of Members' quality, the problem may involve another Council. What I have to say is that in the
2026-05-16 07:40:34 · Baseline
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Page 424 of 606

Page 424 of 606

1 606

412

PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

MR. FRANCIS TANG CI-10 (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman,

Today is the last Annual Conventional Debate held before 2000 and is also the time for us to speak our mind freely. Recently, we often heard some people say that they have a clear conscience and we have also been asked if we really have a clear conscience. After thinking about this carefully and making a self- examination, I wondered who can have a clear conscience except the God I believe in or the Gods of other religions. Even the sages make mistakes. The most important thing is we can rectify those mistakes.

I appreciate very much what Mr. LAM Man-fai has just said. Over these years, we could often find the right answers to various matters through heated debates, just because this was a democratic council. The conclusion reached may not be acceptable to some other people, but we have followed a democratic system, which was what the public expected us to do when they elected us. Although different political parties and people may be dissatisfied with the outcome, we have, after all, devoted open and fair discussions to the issues. Today, I don't know what fate will befall the Council. After I have given my remarks, there may be some feedback tomorrow and some criticism may pass on me. But it is strange that there are people, both inside and outside the Council and include the media representatives here today and fellow colleagues, who share the view of the Government that the quality of councillors is very poor! They cited examples such as the subscription of shares, in which I was also involved. However, if the crux of the problem lies in the quality of councillors, the decision as to retain the Council or not should best be made by the voters. Under no circumstances should the Council be scrapped in a high-handed manner. This is a matter of the fundamental problem. If there are problems with the quality of councillors, it should be decided by the voters as to whether an election has to be held again. It is not the Council itself which has problems. The Council provides a mechanism for the voters to elect their representatives to speak for them, thereby policies will be formulated. Of our three-tier councils, which but the Urban Council has been bestowed with real power to formulate policies for implementation by the Government?

Some members of political parties which have fewer Council seats have publicly called for decentralization and the formation of more municipal councils. I hope Mr. Tim S. Manuel CHAN will excuse me for speaking bluntly as he is one of those who have made such a call. But when he realized the conspiracy of the Government that no power would whatsoever be devolved, he was disillusioned and pointed out that it was wrong for the Government to dissolve the Urban Council. Nevertheless, some people still maintained that the Urban Councillors themselves are responsible for the demise of the Council. To this, I totally disagree. If it is a matter of Members' quality, the problem may involve another Council. What I have to say is that in the

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