Chief Executive Dismisses Call for Independent Covid-19 Inquiry

Lee says the government is constantly reviewing its policies

"Nothing to see here" is what Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu says in response to the proposal of holding an independent inquiry into the Hong Kong government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

At a press conference he dismissed the call made a week ago, saying there is no textbook solution on how to deal with the health crisis.

"The epidemic situation has been changing rapidly, and local governments respond in real time according to the situation. There is no recognised best or standard solution," he said.

Yuen called for independent inquiry last week

"I agree that we must sum up experience to ensure that we can effectively respond to different threats, and that is what the government has been continuously doing -- to sum up experience and optimised measures to ensure we have the ability to respond."

Infectious diseases expert Yuen Kwok-yung floated the idea several days ago and only now has the government responded, perhaps waiting for Beijing to craft what to say?

Yuen was hoping the inquiry would look into the government's deficiencies in areas such as virus-tracking, isolation and testing in the early stages of the pandemic, as well as review the large-scale outbreaks in elderly care homes.

It's a way of making the authorities accountable for how it managed the pandemic, but Lee shot this down, claiming the government is constantly reviewing its processes and improving them.

He said since taking office last July, he launched mechanisms to constantly review and improve the administration's pandemic policies, such as setting up a command group to lead government departments' response to the crisis. 

Lee also said he strengthened the public healthcare system and made decisions based on scientific evidence, among other measures.

Hong Kong focused on luring visitors to the city

And anyway, Hong Kong is moving on from the pandemic.

"We have been planning to reconnect with the international world, as well as fully reopen the border with the mainland. These are the results of the government's continuous review and continuous optimisation of policies," he added.

The two main goals are to focus on promoting Hong Kong to overseas and mainland visitors, while also planning for the return of full normality while constantly reviewing the city's capability in handling crises.

Basically, nothing to see here, move along.

Lee said he also assigned Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong Wai-lun to conduct a full review of the use of isolation and quarantine facilities, and to decide when the land could be released for new developments in phases, while reserving enough space for possible future crises.

Basically there will be no airing of dirty laundry in public -- it will all be done internally. You'll just have to trust that we are doing this in your best interests...

Yuen seems to be throwing out his last political salvo in an attempt to get the government to face up to its failings during the Covid-19 pandemic. Will he be thrown to the wolves or given the cold shoulder? Stay tuned!

Where Did Mainland Visitors Go?

Around 11K mainland visitors come daily to Hong Kong

It is day eight of the Lunar New Year and the windfall of Chinese tourists flooding Hong Kong did not happen.

There had been reports before the Year of the Rabbit began that some 1 million people applied for visas to travel to Hong Kong and Macau.

Shops did not see flood of tourists as expected

Perhaps the majority of them decided to stay closer to home instead?

So far 64,000 people visited Macau on average everyday during the Lunar New Year, of which 37,800 were from China. In contrast, during the same period, only 23,000 people visited Hong Kong daily, and only 11,000 of them were from the mainland.

Newspaper editorials like the one in the Hong Kong Standard are complaining that it took Hong Kong much longer than Macau to settle a deal with Guangdong to drop PCR tests, and the daily cap of visitors coming in either increased or scrapped entirely.

Hong Kong's outgoing deputy at the National People's Congress Standing Committee, Tam Yiu-chung, says he expects Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to announce the removal of the PCR test mandate for those traveling between Hong Kong and the mainland tomorrow.

Macau seeing way more mainlanders than HK

If that happens, that could help salvage the last few days of the Lunar New Year, or looking long-term,  hopefully entice more people to come back to the city.

Picture of the Day: Savoury Pies

Tourtiere on the left, chicken pot pie on the right

A friend visiting from Hong Kong said he needed to get a pie from West Vancouver. Really? All the way there? Now I know why.

We went to Savary Island Pie Company on Marine Drive, which entails crossing the Lion's Gate Bridge to the north shore, turn left onto Marine Drive. The shop is quite small and has some tables for customers to dine in.

But we had already filled up eating our share of Persian food that I blogged about before, so my friend wanted to get some takeaway pies. I was intrigued and wanted to try some too.

Check out this slice of the tourtiere!

In the freezer there were savoury and sweet pies, but I got the small chicken pot pie and tourtiere pie. The latter is a well-known French-Canadian pie that is usually eaten around Christmas time.

I remember a friend, the late chef and food columnist Nathan Fong would spend weeks before Christmas making these tourtiere pies for friends, but I never had a chance to try his.

A few days after we heated up both small pies (good enough to share) and they were delicious! The chicken pot pie was stuffed with chunks of chicken, peas and carrots, celery and onions. 

The tourtiere pie features minced beef and pork, potatoes, pepper, all spice, cinnamon and cloves as well as garlic, onions and orange juice!

What we liked most about both pies was the crust -- it was so flaky and yet held up to the filling and we could tell it had a lot of butter in it!

I don't venture much to the north shore often, so I am pining for the next opportunity to try pies from Savary Island Pie Company again... better yet hope they can open in Vancouver one day!

Savary Island Pie Company

1533 Marine Drive

West Vancouver

604 926 4021

Tycoon Offloads Handbags in Auction

Highlight of sale is this Birkin bag, worth up to HK$2M

People collect wine, sneakers, T-shirts, jeans, books, vinyl records, and Christmas ornaments.

Tycoon Joseph Lau Luen-hung collects Hermes bags and is going to offload 77 of them in a Sotheby's online auction next week. It's billed as the biggest sale from a single collector.

How you amass such a collection -- and not be a woman -- is intriguing to start. Hermes bags must be ordered in advance -- they are each made by hand -- and can cost from HK$70,000 to HK$4 million with long waiting lists.

Lau with his wife Kimbie Chan Hoi-wan

He has Birkin and Kelly bags as well as other Hermes designs collected over a 20-year period, and the most expensive one up for grabs is an emerald green Birkin bag made of crocodile with a diamond-encrusted clasp set in white gold. It is estimated to go for between HK$1 million to HK$2 million.

A quick glance through the online catalogue reveals bags in every colour, design and material that must have been stored carefully for years. 

Sotheby's says part of the sale proceeds from the auction will go to charity, but it's believed the 71-year-old Lau needs the money after making some bad stock investments. 

Last year he sold off part of his extensive wine collection too, making a cool five-fold profit of HK$64 million in a Christie's auction. He also sold some Chinese imperial porcelain valued at HK$151 million.

The billionaire who made his money in property development is also an avid art collector and has made headlines buying several massive diamonds at auction for his two daughters, Zoe and Josephine. The gem stones are named after them too.

The 12.03-carat blue diamond for Josephine

Will Lau put up his art collection for auction too? Maybe this is his way of settling his accounts, as in 2017 he cited having health issues...

But really you have to wonder -- a man buying numerous expensive handbags with the goal of selling them later for a profit. Definitely a quirky investment that's going to pay off.

 

Covid-19 Inquiry Welcome, but with Caveats

Many agree to an inquiry, but after the pandemic is over

After infectious diseases expert Yuen Kwok-yung pitched the idea of an independent inquiry into the Hong Kong government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, others are putting in their two bits as well.

Fellow experts David Hui Shu-cheong and Leung Chi-chiu agreed, but said the inquiry should start later.

Meanwhile professor Lau Yu-lung in the University of Hong Kong Paediatrics agrees in principle, and adds the inquiry should be headed by a judge and that it should start after the World Health Organisation declares the pandemic over.

Hui says inquiry should start later, not now

However, Executive Council convenor and chairperson of the New People's Party Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee threw in her opinion and as expected, she had many caveats. 

She did not like the idea of independent judges heading the inquiry because they are not policy experts, but isn't that the point?

Ip also said the inquiry should be held after the WHO declares the pandemic over, as there are still new variants. But as they are not as life-threatening as the original Covid-19, there is an argument to have it sooner rather than later.

Nevertheless, she did acknowledge there was a lack of support for infected patients at the peak of the crisis last year, saying the review should look into how to better mobilise social resources and how to maintain medical services when handling a large number of infected residents.

In addition Ip suggested looking into ways to make good use of technology and mobilise civil servants in handling major crises -- isn't that what they did in the latter half, when there was not enough manpower for essential services? 

Ip says officials should not be targeted

But perhaps most importantly, she stressed the inquiry should not target government officials who she says worked hard over the past three years.

"Everyone was handling it hand learning along the way, as well as optimising measures. We should not hold anyone accountable for everything, but should instead look for shortcomings and optimise procedures," she said.

While a blame game is not productive, an inquiry needs to uncover what happened and why, and how to make things better in the future.

But in some cases, there were things the health experts suggested and the government did not take the advice, or processes were completely mismanaged or incompetent. The design of the LeaveHomeSafe app comes to mind... 

Most would agree the community vaccination clinics were well organised, but did the government do enough to encourage people, particularly the elderly to get jabbed? Why did the authorities not clamp down on mis- and disinformation on vaccines and how many vials of vaccines were wasted? 

Taxpayers deserve to know what happened, and an inquiry -- if it ever happens -- is a good place to start. But caveats aren't very helpful when the government lacks integrity and transparency...

Dr Yuen Calls for Independent Inquiry into Handling Covid-19

How well did Hong Kong handle the Covid-19 pandemic? 

Infectious diseases professor Yuen Kwok-yung is calling for an independent inquiry into Hong Kong's handling of Covid-19 so that the city can better prepare the next time another pandemic comes around.

During a radio program, Yuen explained that after the 2003 SARS outbreak (20 years ago this March!), an inquiry was held, which led to the establishment of the Centre for Health Protection. 

Yuen and his duck mask that made him endearing

The centre has since put more resources into research and this helped to fight against Covid, he said.

Yuen said there was definitely room for improvement in contact-tracing and isolation arrangements during the current pandemic.

"We saw 12,000 to 13,000 deaths. Why don't we conduct a thorough investigation and clarify what we should do in the future? Speaking for myself, if I'm lucky, as an infectious disease expert, I might see a third pandemic during my lifetime. Hong Kong must be prepared for it."

Does Yuen realise the political implications of calling for an independent inquiry and where it will go? If the government agrees to it -- and that's a big IF -- the scope would probably be so limited to ensure the authorities look good.

An independent inquiry is definitely needed -- not only in the medical handling of this pandemic that led to one of the highest death rates in the world, but also the cost from the financial handouts, to the construction of those isolation units that are now collecting dust all over the city.

Hospitals overwhelmed with infected elderlies

How many of those pandemic kits were handed out, that had N95 masks, rapid antigen tests and that Chinese herbal medicine Lianghua Qingwen? How much did that cost? And the PCR tests conducted in the community testing centres. How many vials of vaccines were wasted?

The inquiry could also give insight into the communications between the infectious disease experts like Yuen and the government, and possibly hints if Beijing played a role in Hong Kong shaping its Covid policy.

We await to see the response...

In the meantime, Yuen is suggesting that masks come off at the end of March when the weather gets warmer and the virus has a shorter life cycle.

He warned there could be another surge of Covid-19 and other respiratory disease infections after people take off their masks, but says this is an inevitable part of opening up.

Get boosted in October, November says Yuen

"Once we take off our masks, the situation may get quite serious. But we have already said in February and March 2020 that this virus will stay with us... We have to open up sooner or later, and it's better to open up sooner after enough people are vaccinated," he said.

Yuen said people should get another Covid booster by October and November to prepare for a possible rebound in the winter.

Ah, it's never ending...

Hong Kong Consumption Vouchers -- Yay or Nay?

Should local residents get consumption vouchers again?

The debate over whether the Hong Kong government should issue consumption vouchers has resumed again, with Executive Council convenor Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee saying no.

"There was a limited effect on the economy when the HK$10,000 spending vouchers were given out again last year. Government resources are limited, so they should invest in the long-term development of Hong Kong instead. But appropriate anti-poverty measures are still needed," she said.

Does she revel in making people not like her?

Ip with her beloved scarves says no

E-vouchers were introduced in 2021 to force people to use up the money through spending it on their Octopus card or on their phone app like AliPay.

But for Ip to not have any sympathy for those who have been out of work but are not considered below the poverty level especially during these three years, any kind of financial help would be greatly appreciated to pay for everyday items, in particular food with the surge in inflation these days.

Perhaps Ip isn't aware of how inflation is hurting people hard these days, when her sacrifice was to not wear her Burberry scarves or buy any more items from the luxury brand until it "retracted or apologised for its unfounded allegations against Xinjiang".

Local celebrities were split for and against supporting cotton from Xinjiang in March 2021.

But back to the vouchers.

The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong supports issuing vouchers at no less than HK$5,000. The DAB joins the Federation of Trade Unions, and the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce in supporting the move.

Kong says yes, but with a HK$50K limit

Interesting that Legislative Council member Doreen Kong Yuk-foon suggests consumption vouchers should only go to those earning less than HK$50,000.

How did the solicitor and politician come up with this salary amount as the borderline?

Picture of the Day: Poon Choi

Happy New Year! Now dig in again and again and again...

For the start of the Year of the Rabbit, we ordered a poon choi takeaway for the three of us at Haiyi Seafood Restaurant on Main Street. At CAD$268 it was a pretty good deal.

When we arrived to pick it up, the restaurant was bustling with lots of tables, ranging from three to 12 people, many dressed in red silk jackets or red outfits to celebrate Lunar New Year.

However, we were surprised to find our poon choi was stone cold! It has just been taken out of the refrigerator!

Such a big pot would take forever to heat up, so when we go to home, we picked out the items we wanted to eat and then microwaved them. Yes, we did.

Nevertheless, it was pretty good, choc full of ingredients like dried oysters, sea moss, pig's trotters, pork tongue, fish maw, goose webs, prawns, fish balls, mushrooms, turnips, chicken, tofu skin and napa cabbage.

We just barely made a dent in it and tonight had our second round. Looks like tomorrow will be poon choi again for dinner!

The restaurant was clever to include a kind of steamer tray at the bottom with holes to prevent the ingredients from being stuck at the bottom of the bowl if we had heated it up on the stove. There was a lot of the thinned out sauce at the bottom too.

And the sauce is good enough to have noodles with too! 

Another Neutral Year, but Listen to the People

Lau (right) holding the neutral fortune for number 11

On the second day of the Lunar New Year at Che Kung Temple in Sha Tin, a community leader gets the responsibility of drawing the fortune stick from a bamboo cylinder filled with sticks with numbers on them.

That jobs falls on Kenneth Lau Ip-keung, chairman of the powerful Heung Yee Kuk. He inherited the position from his late father, Lau Wong-fat, who was known as "King of the New Territories" for his influence over the area.

But why is it that Lau junior keeps picking the lamest sticks?!

Che Kung Temple was busy with visitors

He again picked a neutral stick, this time number 11. Last year it was number 38, and before that 45 in 2021 and 92 in 2020.

Each bamboo cylinder has 96 sticks, 35 bode well, 17 are ill omened, and 44 are neutral. Lau has to kneel and shake the cylinder at an angle until one stick falls out.

And he has now picked four neutral sticks in a row. Perhaps we should be relieved it wasn't a bad one?

Nevertheless, the stick's fortune reads: "Those powerful should not flaunt their power and prestige. They should work hard on listening to advice."

Lau interpreted this year's prophecy as the authorities should consult the public as they led Hong Kong towards normality after three years of "numerous obstacles" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Feng shui master Chan Tin-yan said the prophecy meant "some people from the past" would play a crucial role in helping Hong Kong out of its predicament, especially its dwindling economy.

Wonder who Chan is referring to... 

Will Lee heed these words of advice this year?

"The one in power is not always right, they should let go of prejudice and let people from different backgrounds help them, to lift Hong Kong out of the economic downturn," he explained.

Does he mean John Lee Ka-chiu, or Xi Jinping?

"Hong Kong is still in a difficult condition, and top government officials from the past have done a good job in boosting the local economy. Why not ask for their help again?"

We wonder... which government officials did a good job in boosting the economy?!

Chan said the prophecy also warned against "wasting money on unimportant things" and urged the government to put the economy before everything else to lift people out of poverty.

Hmmm we wonder, what "unimportant things" is he referring to?

This soothsayer sounds like a man of the people!

We shall see if the government heeds these words of advice in the Year of the Rabbit...

And can someone else please pick the fortune next year? Lau isn't very good at it!

Year of the Rabbit Won't be a Big Leap Forward

Cute pink fluffy rabbit at Pacific Place in Admiralty

The Year of the Tiger is just about over and most people would agree to be happy to see it leave and usher in the Year of the Rabbit.

While the Rabbit is known for its politeness, and patience, it is also shrewd.

However, many Hong Kong fortune tellers don't believe the Year of the Rabbit -- a water one -- it won't be hopping into too bright of a future.

Lee and his wife sending good wishes for CNY

They believe the property market will still be weak, the economy will not completely rebound, and Covid-19 will still linger.

Things may be tough for Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu as he is born in the Year of the Rooster, which clashes with the rabbit. 

"His policies may face resistance or not turn out as planned," said Yunwenzi, or Master Cloud, a specialist in Qimen Dunjia, the ancient Chinese art of divination. She predicted the protests in 2019.

She advised Lee to be patient, saying: "Although society is turning more peaceful and harmonious, allowing him to push reforms more easily, it will take time to see results."

Geomancer Tong Pik-ha suggested Lee could improve his luck by going to more celebratory events. "He should travel more, perhaps go overseas to tell more good stories about Hong Kong," she said.

Chan in Davos promoting Hong Kong

Like what Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po is doing, wandering the streets of Davos, Switzerland and trying to convince the Swiss to visit Hong Kong by looking at videos on his super old iPad...

Meanwhile well-known soothsayer Raymond Lo Hang-lap isn't optimistic about the year ahead.

"There is a total absence of the fire element in the Rabbit year," he said. "Fire is a symbol of happiness and positive energy. When fire is absent, there will be less drive for investment activities. There may also be setbacks in the stock market."

Sounds like a repeat of this past year...

On that note, we certainly hope things will be better in the Year of the Rabbit!

祝你i新年快乐！身体健康！心想事成！万事如意！

Delectable Persian Food in North Vancouver

Ground beef and chicken kebabs with crispy Persian rice

Today we went on a culinary adventure -- not only crossing the bridge to North Vancouver, but also trying some Persian food.

A friend's classmate is married to an Iranian and his mother-in-law suggested we go to Khaghan Restaurant in Capilano Mall.

There were four of us -- two visiting from Hong Kong who were eager to try the food, as it's not something you'd find there, and they had fond memories of eating it several years ago in another restaurant in North Vancouver.

Braised lamb shank with dill rice

I wanted to try some authentic food and had no idea where to eat it. We were told that Persian restaurants are not common, as people feel most comfortable eating their food at home, but these dishes do take a lot of work and time to prepare.

When we arrived, we were the only Chinese people in the restaurant, which was not very busy for a Friday for lunch. Nevertheless, we peaked the interest of our waitress who was surprised and then delighted that our tour guide (the friend's classmate) knew several of the dishes and the ingredients. 

I just had an apple for breakfast, but was soon filled up with lots of delicious food, mostly lamb.

We started with some bread with an eggplant dish called mirza ghasemi, like baba ghanoush, but more yellow in colour thanks to the addition of tumeric. We also had a small bowl of olives that were seasoned with sweet and savoury herbs and spices, and two similarly sized bowls of yoghurt, one with ground cucumber, the other with shallots.

For drinks we had a jug of Persian yoghurt called doogh. It was not too thick, and wasn't just salty like a lassi. Instead it had various dried spices in it, including mint and just a touch of salt. It was a great way to clean the palate.

Vegetable stew and lentils on crispy rice

Soon after our main dishes arrived and they were served on large platters!

One was called mix tahdig, featuring yellow lentils on one half of the dish and herb and vegetable stew with kidney beans on the other, and underneath both is tahdig. It's a Persian crispy rice made from basmati rice, flavoured with saffron and is carefully fried on the stove so that the bottom is crispy, almost like a thick cracker. And it's great for this dish, as the toppings are soft, while the bottom gives a crunch. It still held up a few hours later as leftovers.

We were here to try the dizi with lamb, a traditional lamb stew with chickpeas. It is served in a small tin pot. We were given clamps to tip the hot soup out, and then used a metal pestle called goosht koob to mush the lamb shank along with the ingredients it was cooked with -- potatoes, tomatoes, chickpeas, beans, onions, dried lemons, cinnamon and tumeric.

The soup is then portioned out, everyone gets a spoonful of the mushed meat mixture, and then they help themselves to the bread called noon sangak that is ripped into small pieces into the bowl.

Dizi with lamb and bread

It immediately reminded me of the yang rou pao mo I ate in Xian many years ago. It is also a kind of steaming hot lamb soup, and you take naan bread (it's round and stiff) and break it into small pieces to put in the soup.

As Xian was part of the Silk Road, it's not surprising a version of dizi with lamb ended up in the Chinese city, which also has a Muslim quarter.

The dizi here was hearty, flavourful and the meaty mush was so delicious, we began thinking of other ways to eat it, from mixing it with pasta to putting it on toast.

We also ordered braised lamb shank with dill rice, though the braised lamb neck was even better, but it came with a plain tahdig. The dill rice is also delicious, mixed with broad beans. The lamb in both dishes were braised to the point where the meat fell off the bone so easily, and there was even marrow to extract from the neck bone.

One more dish we had was vaziri, featuring a skewer each of chicken and seasoned ground beef, also served with tahdig and a roasted tomato. The ground beef was heavily flavoured with spices, and both meats were tender and hardly dry even though they were cooked over open flames. We speculated they may have been marinated in a salt solution beforehand.

Braised lamb neck with crispy Persian rice

Needless to say we were extremely full afterwards and didn't finish everything -- we got several takeaway boxes and packed everything up. My friend took the most back, filling four boxes and giant sheets of the bread!

Khaghan Restaurant

Unit 66 - 935 Marine Drive

North Vancouver

(778) 340 9065 

Review: Red Roulette

A captivating book about the CCP today

The day before Red Roulette was supposed to hit bookstore shelves, the author Desmond Shum got a phone call from his ex-wife, who he hadn't heard from in four years.

In 2017 she was snatched from her office in Beijing and was never seen again. But in September 2021 he heard her voice on the other end of the line, begging him not to release the book he had written, a story about his humble beginnings over 50 years ago and how his career mirrored the rise of China.

It was his ex-wife, Whitney Duan Weihong who had taught him the ropes of how to do business in mainland China, and together they made multi-billion dollar deals that made them immensely wealthy.

Duan and Shum on their date before marrying

She was the one who cultivated their top-drawer contacts -- from local cadres rising up the ranks, to top senior officials in the Politburo. It really does sound like betting on horses and hoping that yours manages to cross the finish line without corruption charges in tow.

Shum was born in Shanghai, but as a child his parents sacrificed their relatively decent lifestyle to start all over in Hong Kong. He was frustrated at first, but his height and athleticism helped him become accepted in school, learning Cantonese and English, and later university in the United States.

After returning to Hong Kong, Shum managed to manoeuvre his way into China in the late 1990s and saw how anything was possible, but how?

Enter Duan, who would show him how it's done.

Red Roulette chronicles their rapid rise to the top where they flew private jets, bought expensive art work and had homes in various places. It's practically dizzying how Shum nonchalantly reels off how much they spent on wine and jewellery, but that it was the cost of doing business.

Wining and dining businessmen in Bordeaux 

Nevertheless, he reveals very interesting insider observations: Those headlines of officials charged with corruption or caught with lots of prostitutes are mostly false. Shum says they are concocted to justify taking these officials down, when in fact they led pretty clean lifestyles to climb up the political ladder.

Shum describes his relationships with a few of these officials who were later caught, and in the time that he knew them over several years, he claims they would not logistically even have time to cavort with hookers as they were tied up in meetings (with male officials) all day and night.

But he still does not know why Duan was taken and why she has never been formally charged. 

In media interviews, Shum has said that when she called him, he knew someone was next to her telling her what to say, and warning that someone was going to get hurt if the book was released.

He claims he wrote Red Roulette for his son Ariston, who is now 12 years old so that he will know what his parents had achieved and that Shum has no regrets.

Duan, Ariston and Shum in happier times

He also reveals his support for Hong Kong -- even attending the 2019 protests early on and voted in the last District Council election. But with the implementation of the national security law, which Shum says is heavy handed, he believes this is the end of Hong Kong as an international financial hub.

Before the book ends, Shum talks about Xi Jinping before and after he became the leader of China and makes some interesting personal observations about him.

A fascinating read that ties in various news stories that I have read over the years and interesting to see Shum's take as he knew many of these people personally.

HK to End Mandatory Covid-19 Isolation

Lee told lawmakers Thursday HK to end mandatory isolation

Hong Kong is buzzing with the news that from January 30, people who are infected with Covid-19 no longer have to undergo mandatory isolation for five days.

It's after the Year of the Rabbit has started, but it's still good news.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu told lawmakers that the quarantine mandate for hospitals, government facilities and patients' homes had been in force for nearly three years and it would be lifted.

"The government should shift from clear-cut management to one that allows citizens to make decisions and take responsibility for themselves," he said.

"This important step is based on science and risk assessment. This is a necessary stage for all countries in their paths to normality... Hong Kong has walked to this stage already."

The order will be lifted after CNY starts

He said the decision was made as Hong Kong has a high infection and vaccination rate, and that the city's infection rate had not worsened after the border with China was lifted two weeks ago.

More than 93 percent of Hong Kong residents have two doses of the vaccine, 84 percent have had a booster. 

Amazingly he said the city should treat Covid-19 like any other respiratory disease under the new normal.

Gasp!

Then why are people still forced to wear masks? And forced to do PCR tests before crossing the border into the mainland?

But Lee said he is working with mainland officials to end the PCR test and asked for patience. 

Cross-border students will finally be able to use RAT tests to be able to go to school as early as next month.

These units will be even more useless soon

While mainlanders are coming into Hong Kong, it's not in the droves that people feared.

Word has it that the well-heeled ones are quietly coming into the city, laying low for a few days or weeks before going to their final destination -- overseas.

The main reason is that there aren't many flights going overseas from China; in Hong Kong there is a greater choice and frequency, though they will still need to show PCR tests taken 48 hours before they fly.

So with no more mandatory isolation, those thousands of isolation units hastily built all over the city are going to be even more of an eyesore... 

Vancouver Moves Forward on Chinatown Action Plan

Chinatown tries hard to fight back against graffiti to no avail

When Ken Sim was overwhelmingly voted as Mayor of Vancouver, one of his campaign promises was to fix up the situation in Chinatown. 

The neighbourhood is in a sad state, with homeless people and drug addicts sprawled on sidewalks, and numerous cases of petty theft, vandalism and graffiti. It's not just visually unappealing but also the putrid smells of garbage littered everywhere along with feces and urine.

Today Vancouver City Council unanimously approved the "Uplifting Chinatown Action Plan" which is an extensive list of things that will be done to literally clean up the area.

Mayor Sim promises action to clean up the area

"Chinatown is an invaluable part of our city -- a much beloved community that celebrates Vancouver's diversity and cultural heritage," says Sim. 

"Chinatown holds an important place in the hearts of many. Today, with the passage of the Uplifting Chinatown Plan, we are excited to be taking the next step towards the revitalisation and renewal of this vital part of our city," Sim is quoted as saying in the press release.

It does not mention a price tag, but the media reports it could cost around CAD$2.1 million.

The long list of actions are pretty impressive, made to look like a marked improvement from the previous municipal administration.

Initiatives include a "safewalk program" for seniors and residents in Chinatown to get home safely; 24/7 access to a public washroom at Main and Hastings streets; 15 new larger-capacity public waste bins; continuation of CAD$500,000 in graffiti prevention and abatement grants to business improvement associations; additional funding for free paint and graffiti removal on upper facades and heritage buildings; and funding for the Chinese Community Policing Centre.

What about tackling the issue on Hastings Street?

There's also the "proactive feces collection" five days a week -- what does "proactive" mean? The press release points out it was only once a week before -- but why not seven? Do people not defecate the other two days?

While we really appreciate all these actions, they are just keeping Chinatown much cleaner. What about tackling the actual problem of drugs and homelessness a block away on Hastings Street? What is the action plan there? 

Business owners say the report break-ins and vandalism to the police, but they say the officers don't do much about it. 

If nothing is done to really deal with these problems, then the "Uplifting Chinatown Plan" will be a Sisyphean task.

Over 40K Isolation Beds Collecting Dust in HK

The isolation centre at Lok Ma Chau Loop is empty

Remember when Hong Kong rushed to build Covid-19 isolation units, and even brought over mainland Chinese construction workers who built units that featured squat toilets? They had to be retrofitted with sit-down toilets after this were reported to the shock and horror of local residents.

While the pandemic is still ongoing but the latest variant, XBB.1.5 is not as severe though it is more infectious, the Hong Kong government has given up on forcing people into isolation, unless their living situation is such that they need to keep away from others for a few days.

Some were built with squat toilets at first

Only the facilities at Kai Tak and Penny's Bay are being used at the moment.

That means over 40,000 beds in an area covering 72 hectares (177 acres) are unused, the equivalent to 86 football fields.

Who knew the city had that much land -- remember it was suddenly donated by tycoons? Wonder if they want their land back now?

The facilities are in the New Territories in Tsing Yi, San Tin, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, Ma Sik Road in Fanling, Hung Shui Kiu, Tam Mi and in the Lok Ma Chau Loop.

Lawmaker Dennis Leung Tsz-wing said he understood the facilities had been closed for more than half a year, and that about 5,400 workers, including security guards and cleaners, were laid off last May. 

Units at Penny's Bay are still being used now

Not to mention it cost billions of dollars to build these units that were used for about a year, if that? And who paid for them?

Pro-establishment lawmakers (as they are the only ones in the Legislative Council these days), are pushing the government on this, suggesting these units not become white elephants, but be quickly repurposed into housing.

Some suggest it be used for low-income housing for individuals or families, or dormitories for large construction sites, or donated to other countries -- how benevolent. 

In response, some think it's too much trouble to repurpose them into housing units, while others say they should be moved elsewhere as some of these are in far-fetched locations.

Surely these units can be repurposed somehow?

Not even trying to repurpose these units just shows how wasteful the authorities are, and can't be bothered to challenge local architects and engineers to think of creative ways to reuse them.

It also reveals the government not even following its own mantra of telling people to reduce, reuse and recycle...

Lam Missing from CPPCC List

There were rumours Lam would be named to the CPPCC

Even though former Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor believed being a workaholic ensures success, she missed the cut in being appointed to China's highest advisory body.

Tung and Leung elevated to the state level

There were expectations that Lam would be named vice-chairwoman of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference, as the meeting to discuss new members is being held in Beijing from Sunday for three days, but her name was not on the list.

Maybe it's because of the technical issue of her not being a member of the CPPCC. She needs to be recommended to the committee and vetted before she can be approved to be on the list.

Other Hongkongers on the list are former World Health Organisation director-general Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun, tycoon Victor Li Tzar-kuoi, and chairperson of the board of West Kowloon Henry Tang Ying-yen, who was a former CE candidate.

Meanwhile Lam's two predecessors, Tung Chee-hwa and Leung Chun-ying have both been promoted to state-leader roles as CPPCC vice-chairmen.

Tang was appointed to the CPPCC as a member

One would think Beijing would reward her somehow for being stuck between a rock and a hard place during the 2019 protests followed by the Covid-19 pandemic, having to adhere to Beijing's policies.

But nope. Or maybe she wants nothing to do with Beijing anymore?