| Transcript of Secretary for Constitutional Affairs |
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Following is the transcript of Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, at a standup briefing after his visit to the main polling station of the by-election in the Kam Ying Constituency of the She Tin District Council (DC) this (March 11) morning:
Secretary for Constitutional Affairs: The by-election in the (Kam Ying Constituency of the) Sha Tin District Council today so far, has been very steady. All arrangements have been going according to plan. By 11.30 am, we have achieved a turnout rate of 5.88 per cent. This is lower than the overall turnout rate in 2003. We believe that it would be in the interests of the residents of Sha Tin to come out and vote in today’s by-election. It is very necessary for registered voters to do so because in selecting the candidate to represent the respective constituency, it will be contributing to the management of district affairs within Sha Tin. And, also starting from early this year, we have initiated a pilot scheme in various districts in Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories to enable DCs to take part in the management of district facilities such as swimming pools, libraries and community halls. It is our intention to extend the scheme to all 18 districts throughout the territory in 2008 when the new term of the DCs start. So we would encourage all registered voters in the respective constituency to come out and take part in today’s by-election so that they can choose the best possible candidate to represent them and to take part in the district affairs. (Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.) Ends/Sunday, March 11, 2007 |