Mr/Ms Valerio may have believed that some people have been critical of Leung, fearing that he will turn Hong Kong into a communist system. This is not the point his critics, myself included, have been making.

Our disapproval of Leung originates from the fear that he might diminish our city's core values - liberty, rule of law and an independent judiciary.

Under no circumstances can any government policy be executed at the expense of these core values.

Action speaks louder than words. We should take with a pinch of salt Leung's pledge to protect these values.

Leung can never be 'a man of the people' unless he does his utmost during his five-year term as chief executive to protect our core values from being eroded.

Michael Ko, Sham Shui Po

Why tennis superstars avoid HK

I visited Victoria Park at the end of March, one of the bastions of sport on Hong Kong Island.

Imagine my dismay and surprise on seeing the construction of the new swimming pool complex, an enormous iron and presumably concrete complex to grace the Hong Kong skyline.

The amazing thing about this structure and the presence of the Hong Kong Central Library on the south side of the park is that both structures go against a green policy mandated by government officials in the 1990s. During that time, the Hong Kong Tennis Foundation, supported by the Hong Kong Tennis Association, commissioned an architect to develop a viable proposal to put a roof over the tennis centre court. The feasibility study showed that the concept was practical and did not impinge on the existing foundations, which are built on reclaimed land.

Unfortunately, the government, the then urban council, the district boards and the greens were all opposed to the project as it would adversely affect the skyline. As a result, Victoria Park languishes as a bastion to former tennis greats. Tennis in Hong Kong has gone backwards since the Salem Open was moved to Beijing.

A new modern venue with seating for 5,000 spectators is needed before the ATP or WTA would consider bringing an event back to Hong Kong.

The days of Laver, Rosewall, Newcombe, McEnroe, Connors, Lendl, Sampras, Agassi and Chang are in the distant past and the next generation of superstars will never grace these shores in the foreseeable future.

E. W. Hardisty, Wan Chai

Evolution is still just a conjecture

I have read with interest many of Alex Lo's columns but have found myself at odds with some statements he has made.

He clearly holds to a very dim view of much of conservative American thinking on scientific matters and has particularly made reference to evolution ('US science pays a price for being right', March 31).

I need to remind him that even now Darwinian evolution is still a conjecture (not a theory), and many eminent scientists have grave misgivings about the whole subject of macro-evolution. Charles Darwin had very limited knowledge about the workings of living organisms and so held to the idea that the 'simple' cell took a certain number of years to evolve.

We now know that the living cell is far from simple and can best be described as a massively complex city of industries.

The millions of years that are needed to arrive at the 'simple' cell are mind-boggling. This is why some of the world's greatest physicists are realising that even the number of years back to the big bang are not sufficient to explain away Darwin's conjecture.

Geoffrey Allen, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England

Elderly deserve better deal

The plight of 100-year-old Ng King-yin and his wife Lam Sau-king, 95, highlights the problem of the lack of places in old people's homes.

Mr Ng was offered a place at an aged-care home after two years of waiting. However, his wife Lam Sau-king was not eligible for a regular care home place due to her worsening health.

Ng gave up his place, as he wanted to live out the rest of his life with his wife [although they now have moved into a private care home].

I agree with those legislative councillors who say that the government should offer more subsidised residential-care services for elderly couples.

First of all, as a society, we owe a debt to these people. During their working lives, they contributed to Hong Kong and helped to make it a prosperous city.

They should be rewarded for this contribution and are entitled to live a happy old age.

Unfortunately, longevity in the city is not a blessing, as community care for the elderly is inadequate. The government is failing to cater for the needs of this section of society.

Their children may not be able to provide all the support they need. The daughter of Ng King-yin and Lam Sau-king is a case in point. She was the sole caregiver of her parents.

The shortage of aged-care services places a burden on the offspring of the elderly. Sons and daughters are busy with their work. They cannot always take care of their parents. If they have children of their own and are the breadwinner, they may not be able to financially support their parents.

Hong Kong has an ageing population. There are 21,283 people waiting for places in regular-care home and 6,575 waiting for nursing home places. The average waiting time for a regular-care place is 22 months and that for a nursing home place is up to 37 months. Some 4,000 old people die waiting for places each year. Given our ageing society, these waiting lists are likely to get longer.

The government has to improve services for our old folk as soon as possible. It must provide more subsidised residential-care services.

Connie Lam, Ma On Shan

Modify fare adjustment mechanism

The MTR Corporation wants to increase fares by 5.4 per cent in June because of the rate of inflation and higher salaries in the transport sector.

It wants to go ahead with this fare increase despite making [net profits] of HK$14.7 billion last year.

This is ridiculous and I think the problem stems from the fare-adjustment formula.

The way it is calculated is clearly flawed. The government needs to fine-tune this mechanism so that the profits and losses of the MTR Corp are taken into account.

Also, the corporation should recognise its duty to the public and the importance of corporate social responsibility.

Maggie Chan Fong-chau, Yau Ma Tei