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10 to compete for 6 seats in Urban Council election

The Young Reporter (1977, March 01), 09(08), pp. 4, 5.
永久網址 - https://sys01.lib.hkbu.edu.hk/bujspa/purl.php?&did=bujspa0001181

Ten candidates will be running for the six vacant seats in the Urban Council’s biennial election day after tomorrow.

Six of the candidates are incumbents and they are Brook Bernacchi and Dr. Henry Hu of the Reform Club, Edmund Chow, Peter C.K. Chan and Ambrose Choi of the Civic Assn, and Tsin Sai-nin, an independent.

The other four are Francis Chaine, Tang Man-sit and Frederick Yu of the Reform Club, and Wilson Tuet of the Civic Assn.

Brook Bernacchi, who has been an Urban Councillor for more than 25 years, advocates the establishment of a Greater Hongkong Council, similar to the Metropolitan Manila Council in the Philippines, to replace the existing Urban Council.

He explained that the Greater Hongkong Council should be made up of district councils to be set up in every district throughout Hongkong, including the urbanised areas in the New Territories.

He criticised local news media for the insufficient coverage of the council’s election, which resulted in the poor turnout of voters in the past years.

Francis Chaine, who lost in the last election, called for all elected Urban Councillors to bridge the opinion gap between the people and the Government.

He claimed that the drafting of the Postal Bill and the revaluation of rateable values were good examples of the lack of public opinions being reflected to the Government.

He also urged elected councillors to lead in fighting crimes while he himself suggested the Government to revise the existing laws in dealing with robbery and prostitution.

Peter C.K. Chan, a Civic Assn, candidate seeking re-election, alleged that appointed councillors usually dominate the votes for a controversial issue as they represent a single interest while elected councillors are divided since they represent different parties and viewpoints.

He agreed that all members of the council should be elected and that it would be even better if each councillor could represent one district throughout Hongkong.

Besides, Chan suggested that the work of the council should cover the policy-making of transportation and fire services.

Ambrose Choi, another Civic Assn, candidate seeking re-election, strongly recommended that the franchise be expanded to cover all locally born citizens aged over 18.

In this way, he said, the social consciousness of the young people in Hongkong could be built up.

Besides, only by enlarging the franchise, he said, could the Urban Council be a representative body for the public and that more eligible voters would be willing to vote.

He also proposed the seats for appointed councillors be reduced to six and those for elected councillors be expanded to 18.

Edmund Chow, secretary-general of the Civic Assn, who is seeking re-election, said that the Urban Council should consist of only elected members to represent and speak for the public.

He criticised that the executive arm of the council, the Urban Services Department, could exist without the council because the USD is merely another Government department, with no representation of the council in its line of work.

On the expansion of the council, Chow said urbanised areas in the New Territories should be administered by the Urban Council.

Dr. Henry Hu, who is seeking re-election, urged the Government to carry out the plans for building more multistorey bazzars to ease the hawkers’ problem.

Dr. Hu also dismissed current allegation that the council was planning to phase out the existence of hawkers but, on the contrary, it would try its best to serve and protect the benefits of the hawkers.

Being the vice-chairman of the Reform Club, Dr. Hu said there is not much difference between the club and the Civic Assn, since both aim at seeking to improve the community, but they do differ in the emphasis and priority of their work.

NEW TERRITORIES

Tang Man-sit, chairman of the board of Pok Oi Hospital and first-time candidate, felt that the work of the council should include the New Territories.

He proposed that the Government should establish more industrial estates in the New Territories to provide more working opportunity for the people in the area.

He thought that professionalism should not be encouraged for the work of Urban Councillors because a professional councillor could not have a chance to deal with all sorts of people.

Tsin Sai-nin, the only independent candidate in the election, criticised that the home ownership scheme now in the progress is a commercial venture of the Government rather than a social service to solve, the housing problem of Hongkong.

Tsin, a member of the Housing Authority, commented that the Government should not impose land tax on the flats to be sold under the scheme.

As a result of the land tax, he said the selling price of these flats would become higher and thus defeat the purpose of providing low-cost housing to the public.

Wilson Tuet, who lost in the last election, said that he would put more emphasis in promoting public order and the morality of Hongkong if he were elected.

Tuet, the chairman of the Anti-Crime Committees of both the Civic Assn, and the Hongkong & Kowloon Property Owners and Multistorey Buildings General Assn., said more recreational facilities and activities should be provided to the young people.

Frederick Yu, a Reform Club candidate and a new face to the Urban Council election, suggested that more responsibility and power should given to the council.

Citing examples in Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries, Yu proposed that public housing, social welfare, city planning and public transport should be put under the control of the council.

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