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1. Senior Appointments Announced

2. Only two bids for KCRC project

3. Land-sale system deemed outdated

4. Ratings of Tung's team take a plunge

5. I had to hold horse back for safety, says Fradd

6. KCRC project attracts just two developers

1. Senior Appointments Announced
Hong Kong Government, 12 November 2002

The Government announced today (November 12) the following senior appointments:

* Mr Mak Chai-kwong, Principal Government Engineer, to succeed Mr Lo Yiu-ching as Director of Highways with effect from November 13, 2002. Mr Lo has assumed the duties of the Permanent Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works (Transport and Works) with effect from September 1, 2002.

* Mr Tsao Tak-kiang, Principal Government Engineer, to succeed Dr Lau Ching-kwong as Director of Civil Engineering with effect from December 29, 2002 when Dr Lau proceeds on pre-retirement leave.

Commenting on the two appointments, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joseph W P Wong, expressed full confidence in the two officers, "I am confident that Mr Mak and Mr Tsao, with their proven administrative and professional experience, will lead the Highways Department and the Civil Engineering Department respectively to face the challenges ahead."

Mr Wong also thanked Dr Lau Ching-kwong for his dedicated and meritorious service during the last 36 years.

The following are the biographical notes on Messrs Lau Ching-kwong, Mak Chai-kwong and Tsao Tak-kiang :

Dr Lau Ching-kwong, JP - Aged 60, Dr Lau joined the Hong Kong Civil Service as an Assistant Engineer in March 1966. He was promoted to Principal Government Engineer in September 1996 and to the Director of Civil Engineering in March 2001.

He will proceed on pre-retirement leave with effect from December 29, 2002 after more than 36 years of service with the Government.

Mr Mak Chai-kwong, JP - Aged 52, Mr Mak joined the Hong Kong Civil Service as an Assistant Engineer in August 1976. He was promoted to Chief Engineer in August 1994, to Government Engineer in May 1997 and to Principal Government Engineer in June 2000. He is currently the Project Manager of New Territories East Development Office in Territory Development Department.

Mr Tsao Tak-kiang, JP - Aged 57, Mr Tsao joined the Hong Kong Civil Service as an Apprentice Engineer in September 1969. He was promoted to Chief Engineer in August 1994, to Government Engineer in June 1998 and to Principal Government Engineer in August 2001. He is currently the Project Manager of New Territories North Development Office in Territory Development Department.

2. Only two bids for KCRC project
Dennis Ng, The Standard 13 November 2002

Only two of 11 developers invited by the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation to submit tenders for its HK$4 billion Ho Tung Lau residential-retail project have done so.

KCRC property director Daniel Lam said it had received tenders from Cheung Kong (Holdings) and Sino Land for the Sha Tin project when tenders closed at noon yesterday.

``We are satisfied with the response in view of the technical complexities of the project,'' he said.

Sino Land associate director Eric Ip said the group had submitted the tender on its own and was confident about the future of the property market.

Shortlisted candidates invited to submit tenders included Sun Hung Kai Properties, Nan Fung Development, Henderson Land Development, HKR International, New World Development and Wharf Holdings.

Sun Hung Kai Properties vice-chairman Thomas Kwok said his group did not bid for the project because the land premium was too high.

Wharf Holdings assistant director Ricky Wong said the project would take too long to build, meaning the developer would have to wait longer for a financial return.

Midland Surveyors director Ronald Cheung said the tendering result was not bad, given the complexity of the construction works.

Some developers might not have been keen to submit tenders for the project because they had won projects from the two railway operators or the Urban Renewal Authority, Cheung said.

The 2.65-hectare site will produce about 122,900 square metres (or 1.3 million square feet) of gross floor area.

Five residential blocks of 37 to 40 storeys will be built on a two-storey podium to provide a total of about 1,560 flats and 293 car park spaces.

The successful bidder will be required to pay a land premium of HK$1.32 billion, or HK$999 per square foot, plus an entry fee of HK$70 million and HK$175 million for engineering works carried out during the preliminary stages.

Surveyors estimated the construction costs might be up to HK$1,500 psf - 40 to 50 per cent higher than construction costs of typical projects - because the successful bidder would also pay for an interchange and road access to future premises.

Bidders had to pay a guaranteed profit, irrespective of how the project ultimately turned out in the end, with the KCRC leaving the sum involved up to them.

Surveyors estimate the total investment cost to develop the Ho Tung Lau project will be almost HK$4 billion, or about HK$3,024 per square foot.

Cheung Kong executive director Justin Chiu said his group had experience in handling technically complex projects.

3. Land-sale system deemed outdated
STAFF REPORTER, SCMP 13 November 2002

A senior government adviser said yesterday the application list land-sale system should be abolished as it was outdated.

Yeung Yue-man, chairman of the Lands and Building Advisory Committee, said his panel would discuss the issue next month. He said the land application system, which started in 1999 to allow property developers to choose sites from a government auction list, was not serving its original purpose of preventing both an over-supply of flats and a drop in prices.

"When the developers know the location of sites in the government's land bank there is no need for them to apply for the land to be sold. Why do I have to pay money to buy the land and put it in my land bank? It is always better for the government to keep it in its land bank," he said.

But Hang Lung Properties chairman Ronnie Chan Chi-chung opposed the suspension of land applications. "There is no need to suspend it. Land supply should be determined by the market."

There has been strong speculation that the suspension of the land application system, together with land auctions, will be included in the package of measures the government is expected to propose to prop up the property market.

The Executive Council is believed to have discussed the relief package yesterday but no announcement was made.

Other measures are expected to include the abolition of the Home Ownership Scheme, which has been blamed for crowding out private property developers.

It is believed the government will also drop its target of achieving 70 per cent of home ownership by 2007. Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa said in 2000 that the original target of supplying 85,000 flats per year had been dropped in 1998.

4. Ratings of Tung's team take a plunge
JIMMY CHEUNG, SCMP 13 November 2002

The popularity of the chief executive and most of his team has taken a beating, with the security chief suffering the biggest fall.

The dismal ratings are expected to slip further unless the government rolls out morale-boosting measures ahead of January's Policy Address.

After rising over the past four straight months, Tung Chee-hwa's rating fell by 2.1 points from October to 47.1 out of a scale of 100 points, based on the poll by the Hong Kong University's Public Opinion Programme.

The ratings of all but three of his team fell by 0.2 to 5.6 points in the telephone survey of more than 1,000 respondents early this month.

Security Secretary Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee's rating fell from 60.1 to 55.4. Chief Secretary Donald Tsang Yam-kuen and Financial Secretary Antony Leung Kam-chung plunged to their lowest ratings of 60.1 and 51.8 points, respectively.

For the sixth straight month, Secretary for Justice Elsie Leung Oi-sie's rating dropped, hitting 47.4 points.

Professor Lau Siu-kai, head of the Central Policy Unit and Mr Tung's public policy adviser, conceded that people were dissatisfied with the government.

He said there were no quick fixes to change people's perception. "Rebuilding the government's popularity is a long-term job, " he said.

Survey expert Li Pang-kwong, of Lingnan University, believes the officials' popularity fell because the Policy Address, which usually raises public support, had been delayed from October to January.

Professor Li warned of a continuing slide unless officials adopted popular measures, such as forcing electricity suppliers to cut tariffs.

5. I had to hold horse back for safety, says Fradd
PATRICK POON, SCMP 13 November 2002

Former champion jockey Robbie Fradd told a race-fixing trial yesterday he had restrained his mount during a race to avoid it running out of energy, describing it as a tactical decision.

The South African rider testified after Deputy Judge Colin Mackintosh ruled in the District Court that he had a case to answer to the charge of cheating at gambling.

Fradd said it was impossible to let his mount, Winning Dragon, run as fast as it could and it was necessary to hold it back.

He also said he did not want to run on the heels of the horses in front as it would be dangerous.

Answering criticism from prosecution expert witness New Zealander Gavin John Whiterod, who said Winning Dragon should have filled in the gap behind the leading horse, the jockey said: "It would definitely have been wrong if I had done that."

The prosecution alleges Fradd, 37, won money for himself or "any other person unascertained" connected with placing bets with the Hong Kong Jockey Club on the outcome of the race on the night of January 16. Fradd denies one count of cheating at gambling.

He was arrested in February along with 20 others on suspicion of race-fixing.

The jockey said he had expected Victory Marble, which won the race that night, would be leading the race and that another horse, Merry Merry, which took the gap, would also tend to lead because they were older and more experienced.

Winning Dragon was a three-year-old and the race was its third start, the court heard.

Fradd denied placing any bet on the race for himself or anyone else.

John Matthew Schreck, the chief stipendiary steward of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, said he disagreed with Mr Whiterod and said Fradd's restraining of the horse was "perfectly legitimate" and "justifiable".

Mr Schreck, who has had 33 years' experience as a stipendiary steward for jockey clubs in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong, said he was disappointed that Mr Whiterod did not go to the Happy Valley racecourse to watch the races, the track and other facilities before judging Fradd's riding.

He said the charge against Fradd was wrong.

Mr Schreck said although Winning Dragon was an even-money favourite to win the North Island Handicap on that day, it did not mean it would definitely win. According to statistics, only 27 per cent of favourites won their races.

Four other Jockey Club stipendiary stewards - Jamie Andrew Stier, Kam Shiu-bor, Tony Lam Tsun-hin and Martin Maxwell Knibbs - also testified that they did not question Fradd's riding and believed he was only "settling the horse" in the early stage of the race.

The hearing continues today.

6. KCRC project attracts just two developers
ERNEST Kong, SCMP 13 November 2002

Construction at Ho Tung Lau must not affect railway operations. Picture by Garrige Ho

Developers responded coolly to the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corp's (KCRC) HK$4 billion Ho Tung Lau development in Sha Tin yesterday, with only two companies interested.

Sino Land and Cheung Kong (Holdings) emerged as the only competitors for the 1.32 million square foot residential and retail project next to Fotan KCR Station although 11 short-listed developers were invited to take part.

KCRC's property director Daniel Lam Chun announced after the tender closed at noon that it had received two tenders for the project, the first development offered by the company this year.

"We are quite happy with the number of tenders considering the difficulty of the project," he said.

However, it was the worst reception among five major railway-related or urban renewal projects put out for tender by the Mass Transit Railway Corp (MTRC), Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and KCRC this year.

Last month, the MTRC's Tiu Keng Leng Station project in Tseung Kwan O secured five tenders and the development rights were eventually awarded to Cheung Kong. URA's Tsuen Wan town centre project received seven bids in July. The MTRC received six bids for its Hang Hau Station project, another development along the Tseung Kwan O rail extension, in June.

Early this year, MTRC's Tseung Kwan O Station development had seven competing tenders and it was won by a consortium led by New World Development.

Mr Lam said the main difficulty of the Ho Tung Lau project was that the development had to be built above an operating rail network without affecting the running of the railway.

Developers including New World Development and Nan Fung Development, which were among the short-listed companies, had expressed concerns about high costs and technical difficulties.

Sino Land associate director and company secretary Eric Ip Sai-kwong said after submitting its tender yesterday the company was bidding solo.

"We are interested in the project's location and we have confidence in the property market's short to long-term development."

Sino Land earlier secured the development rights of the URA's Tsuen Wan project and teamed with Kerry Properties to take the MTRC's Hang Hau Station development. The Ho Tung Lau development will provide 1,560 residential units, 293 parking spaces and 2,000 sq ft of retail space.

The KCRC is asking for HK$70 million up front as a consultancy fee and a proposed guaranteed profit. The highest offer will win the bid.

Developers and analysts said the long and complex construction work had dampened interest. Total investment was estimated at HK$4 billion, including HK$2 billion construction costs, HK$1.32 billion land premium and the balance in interest charges. The average development cost could translate to HK$3,100 per square foot.

Wharf (Holdings) assistant director Ricky Wong Kwong-yiu said the group did not take part in the tender, citing concerns about the technical difficulty and the longer period required to recoup investment. Other short-listed developers that expressed initial interest in the project but failed to submit tenders included Sun Hung Kai Properties, Henderson Land Development, New World Development, Hang Lung Properties and HKR International.

Only developers that had undertaken large-scale projects in the past three years were invited by the KCRC to tender. Some smaller players criticised KCRC's arrangement. However, Mr Lam said the KCRC encouraged medium-sized developers to participate by entering into joint ventures with experienced developers.

The KCRC hoped to release the planned Tsuen Wan West Station project for tender by the end of the year, he said.