Monday, Oriental Daily

Plan to move Mong Kok flower shops invites opposition

Flower shops on Prince Edward Road West, Mong Kok, which is always a hotspot during the Lunar New Year’s Eve and Valentine’s Day, have strongly opposed a government proposal to move them to a government facility in Sai Yee Street in the same district, as a way to resolve the problem of the shops obstructing the road for pedestrians and vehicles. One shop representative said the government had not told them whether the new place was street shops or inside a shopping mall, and doubted the new place was spacious enough for the 100-plus shops in the area. The Planning Department said it would consult the District Council regarding the proposal after completing the study of land use in the area in the first half of this year.

Tuesday, Oriental Daily

Government takes no action against illegal sub-divided units in Hung Shui Kiu

The Lands Department has been criticised for taking no action against the people who illegally redeveloped a number of squatters’ homes and an ancestral hall in Wo Ping San Tsuen in Hung Shui Kiu. They modified the property using metal sheets and styrofoam to create ten sub-divided flats of about 150 sq ft each for rental. It was reported that the department has done nothing about this, except putting up a warning letter at the site while the owners have been earning more than HK$40,000 in rent every month. With no action taken against the misdeeds, some more squatters’ homes in the same area have recently been turned into subdivided flats.

Wednesday, Ming Pao Daily

Approvals for Chinese nationality hit new low last year

Applications for Chinese nationality in the city have been on the rise in recent years. According to figures of the Immigration Department, the number of such applications received last year hit a five-year high at 1,689 cases while about 60 per cent of applications were approved, the lowest in three years. This was compared with 80 per cent in 2013 and 2014 respectively. One unsuccessful application came from a 16-year-old Nepalese girl born and raised in Hong Kong whose father has resided in the city for 30 years. The Immigration Department said this was probably due to the fact that applications received in one year might not be processed or closed in the same year.

Thursday, Ming Pao Daily

Primary school vice-principal teaches parents how to boost children’s English skills

A vice-principal at Cumberland Presbyterian Church Yao Dao Primary School in Tin Shui Wai gave tips to parents on how to make their kindergarten children have English language skills equivalent to those of a Primary 3 pupil. In a seminar held by the school for parents, vice principal Yuen Wai-sze repeatedly said children could master English word pronunciation skills by listening to an alphabet song tens of times and could memorise the English words in an English book by reading it many times. Yuen also said Primary 1 pupils of the school could compose a 55 English-word essay and those in Primary 3 could produce one in 110 English words. Asked about this, professor Cheung Hin-tat, head of the Department of Linguistics and Modern Language Studies at the HK Institute of Education, said he did not understand why children had to study things in upper classes and said if parents followed Yuen’s words, their kids would lose interest in learning gradually.

Friday, Ming Pao Daily

Government to consult public about underground road links projects in urban districts

The Civil Engineering and Development Department would consult the public in the second half of this year on plans to build underground road links in urban districts, such as Tsim Sha Tsui, Wan Chai and Tin Hau. Tony Ho Ying-kit, a geotechnical engineer for the department, said they would consider public opinions, actual development needs of the districts and financial viability to prevent such projects becoming “white elephants”.

Compiled by Nelson Cheng