Hong Kong’s chief executive said the Wang Fuk Court fire had exposed corruption in building-maintenance work and that tighter oversight alone would not address the problem.
He said reform needed to tackle the underlying causes so that unscrupulous people could not exploit residents and maintenance projects could proceed normally. The factors he identified included the large sums involved in such work and the unequal professional knowledge between residents and those handling projects.
Speaking during a radio simulcast programme on 17 September, he said the government would introduce further comprehensive reform measures after an independent commission’s report was published. No specific measures or publication date were given.
The programme also considered proposed changes to the way owners’ meetings and votes are organised. A caller said the threshold for convening an owners’ meeting was relatively low while the voting threshold was relatively high, and proposed allowing each person to hold no more than 10 proxy votes.
The chief executive said the proposal would be referred to the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau for study. He said any changes would need to be controllable and practicable.