Motion Debate on The Whole Community Battling Against Adversity

Madam Deputy, the Liberal Party fully supports the original motion of "The whole community battling against adversity" and all the amendments.

Madam Deputy, insofar as this atypical pneumonia incident is concerned, I think Hong Kong is a blessed piece of land. No catastrophic incidents have ever occurred here, and in this place of ours, there is no flood, earthquake, and so on. Therefore, faced with the current situation, many people and the Government may not be able to adapt to it at once. In this battle against atypical pneumonia, of course, I absolutely agree that we must express appreciation to the medical and health care personnel, as mentioned by those Honourable colleagues who have spoken before me. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the medical and health care personnel for their sacrifices.

Certainly, we, being members of the business community, are concerned about the impact suffered by the business sector since the outbreak of atypical pneumonia, and many employees are also worried about losing their jobs. We may have to monitor the situation closely in this month or the next. Over the last couple of days, in the programme "Close Encounter of the Political Kind" (政事有心人) of the Hong Kong Commercial Radio, Mr WONG Yuk-man raised a question about how we could show sympathy and care to victims in this atypical pneumonia incident, as we know that as of today, 157 people have died and 1,589 people have contracted the disease, and while 791 of them have been discharged from hospital, 798 people are still hospitalized. Certainly, within the Government there are many procedures and regulations. It may be difficult for the Government to instantly do something for these victims.

Yesterday, Mr Tommy CHEUNG drew my attention to the question of whether it was possible for the industrial and business sector to take the initiative to do something for people who died of the disease and those who have been infected. I made dozens of telephone calls this morning mostly to explore with the industrial and business sector the possibility of raising money to set up a fund, so that the families of the deceased can be given a sum of money and the families of those who are still hospitalized can also be granted some subsidies. For those who have been discharged from hospital but have yet fully recovered, as they may not be able to resume work immediately, the possibility of providing them with some money was also discussed. I am very glad to learn that friends from the industrial and business sector have responded very positively to this proposal. Sometimes when I ask for their assistance to do something for the sector or for the Liberal Party, I must do a lot of explaining before I can secure their support. But today, although I made only some 20 telephone calls, they responded very quickly.

Yesterday, I discussed the details with Mrs LAM of the Social Welfare Department (SWD). Director LAM was of the view that if we could raise a certain amount of money, the SWD would be willing to vet applications and make payments on our behalf. We proposed that for cases of death, $50,000 to $200,000 would be granted for each case, subject to the decision of Director LAM of the SWD (Dr YEOH is also aware of this). The decision would rest with Director LAM and her colleagues. We also proposed a monthly allowance of $3,000 to $8,000 for people who are still hospitalized as well as those who have recovered for a period of three months. Certainly, the singletons will get less, whereas those with families may be granted $8,000. We hope that this incident can be resolved three months later. The SWD was very modest, saying that since the money would be contributed by the industrial and business sector, the sector should set guidelines for the SWD to follow. I broadly explained our thoughts and ideas. As for the specific mode of operation, we certainly hope that the Government will handle it.

The business community has always acted promptly. I think it is most imperative to act quickly, and the criteria must be lenient. So, about two hours ago, I got in touch with Mr Raymond OR of the HSBC. Since tomorrow is a holiday, we will therefore open with the HSBC on Friday an account for the "Business Community Relief Fund for Victims of SARS" (specifying that it is for the "victims"). I believe the money will reach Director LAM next Monday.

Director LAM considered that it is good to involve more members of the business community, so as to gain more recognition from the community. So, we proposed a three-level scheme of donations — $1 million, $500,000 and $250,000. The response has been quite unusual, because in the past when we solicited donations, more donors would make donations in smaller amounts, but with regard to this fund, those who donated $1 million account for the largest number of donors, with less donors donating $500,000 and the least number of donors donating $250,000. So far, the industrial and business sector has already raised $17 million for this fund. I mentioned this to Mrs LAM earlier on, and she said that with a fund of $17 million, grants could be made in accordance with the criteria mentioned by me earlier. Certainly, the number of deaths may continue to rise. As to the question whether a case of death can still be granted $50,000 to $80,000, it would have to be decided by her then. Since the number of discharged patients now begins to rise, her view is that regarding discharged patients and patients in the course of recovery, she could more specifically look into whether the monthly subsidy should continue to be pitched at $3,000 to $8,000.

I must briefly mention something that I did at the suggestion of Director LAM. To make this move more credible and to drum up more support from the business community, I telephoned the Financial Secretary asking whether deduction could be granted for donations to this fund. The money in question is not much, and the business community might as well donate that 10-odd percent of money eventually. But I believe this can serve to enhance its credibility. Having thought about it for a while, the Financial Secretary endorsed the idea right away. Of course, he must talk to the Inland Revenue Department, but the Government has responded very quickly this time around.

Finally, Madam President, to conclude, that the Liberal Party and the industrial and business sector can get this done in one day is a token of care and support from the industrial and business sector. As stated in the original motion, all Hong Kong people must do their part, and I hope that the industrial and business sector can take a leading role in caring for and supporting the victims. Thank you, Madam President.