Audit Commission – Charm

Hong Kong Legco to explore mainland-style oversight system for bills enforcement

1 month ago02 mins

Hong Kong’s legislature will consider establishing a dedicated mechanism to scrutinise the implementation of approved bills and funding, drawing inspiration from mainland China’s law enforcement inspection system, according to its president. Legislative Council president Starry Lee Wai-king also dismissed concerns that the city’s first five-year plan would undermine the “one country, two systems” governing principle,…

Ex-Hong Kong logistics head stripped of award, 3 staff face action in water scandal

3 months ago02 mins

Hong Kong authorities will hold three logistics department officers accountable over their roles in a bottled water procurement scandal, with the former director, set to have his Silver Bauhinia Star revoked, cleared of direct oversight. Civil service chief Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said a probe into the scandal involving the HK$166 million bottled water procurement…

Hong Kong set to unveil results, disciplinary action after bottled water probe

4 months ago02 mins

Hong Kong’s government is expected to announce next month the results of its investigation into a bottled water scandal that rocked the city and disciplinary action against those officials involved after confirming that the probe has been completed. The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, which set up a task force to probe the scandal…

Hong Kong authorities distribute 30% of HK$4.1 billion Tai Po fire relief fund

4 months ago02 mins

Hong Kong authorities have distributed about 30 per cent of a HK$4.1 billion (US$528 million) fund set up for residents affected by last month’s deadly fire, along with more than 45,000 donated items. A spokeswoman for the Home and Youth Bureau said: “The total financial commitment of the various support measures in place so far…

Underperforming top brass face probes, warns Hong Kong civil service chief

Cs news7 months ago02 mins

Senior officials may face disciplinary probes if their departments are found to have performed badly by the ombudsman or audit commissioner under the new accountability system being pushed by the Hong Kong government, the civil service minister has said. Speaking at a Legislative Council panel meeting on Monday, Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung…

Opinion | Hong Kong can’t let its construction sector be captured by bad actors

Cs news7 months ago03 mins

Hong Kong should be very concerned about the recent flurry of cases involving misbehaviour in the construction industry. It would be too easy to write them off as isolated incidents when they could just as easily be straw in the wind, indicating a serious underlying malaise. One high-profile case is the Anderson Road quarry redevelopment…

Hong Kong official calls for ‘heightened alertness’ among staff after water scandal

Cs news8 months ago02 mins

Hong Kong’s logistics chief has issued a set of guidelines to senior civil servants, urging them to “heighten their alertness” and conduct due diligence to prevent potential fraudulent acts by tenderers and contractors, following a recent drinking water procurement scandal. “In light of the recent incident on procurement of bottled drinking water for which fraud…

Opinion | Water scandal another blow to public trust in Hong Kong government

Cs news8 months ago04 mins

It is quite unimaginable that Hong Kong continues to struggle with basic necessities such as water. However, that is the case, at least when it comes to the government. Ten years ago, opposition lawmaker Helena Wong Pik-wan found excessive levels of lead in drinking water that was later discovered to have affected 11 public housing…

No separate inquiry needed to probe Hong Kong water scandal, treasury chief says

Cs news8 months ago03 mins

Hong Kong’s treasury chief has dismissed calls to set up a separate commission of inquiry to investigate officials’ roles in a bottled water procurement scandal, arguing that the government’s auditors will be able to identify lapses in a “professional and independent” manner. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu, the head of…

Explainer | Pouring over the facts: what is behind Hong Kong’s water procurement scandal?

Cs news8 months ago02 mins

Hong Kong police have arrested a married couple suspected of being at the centre of a rapidly unfolding controversy surrounding a HK$52.9 million (US$6.8 million) contract to supply drinking water to some government offices. The pair allegedly defrauded the government and are suspected of breaching the Trade Descriptions Ordinance by providing false information about the…