Despite the Government's will to demonstrate its existence as an efficient, effective and responsible administrator, its image is being tarnished by the poor quality of management in some departments. Top on the list is the Highways Department - you can see poorly supervised road constructions around our city. Either the progress is not closely monitored leading to unnecessary inconvenience to road users because of delays, or the quality of work is so bad that driving on such road surfaces is like riding a horse in the middle of the town: it feels like galloping in a city of concrete. It is hard to know why this department is so inadequate and why it is amongst the worst in our society for co-ordinating roadworks which are supposed to be its leaders' area of expertise. The Transport Department is also failing to plan and forecast the long-term needs of transportation in Hong Kong. This is exemplified by its senior officers' mishandling of the northwest railway plan, putting millions of dwellers in agony for years to come. Within the city, the scene is not much better, particularly with regard to the department's lack of control of the bus companies to maintain an efficient public transportation system. Furthermore, the department also turns a blind eye or rather a deaf ear to the horrifying level of sharp noise generated by the poorly maintained braking systems of buses. It makes one wonder if these buses are safe. Do legislators feel a review is needed? Or do they feel happy with the present arrangement in the run down to 1997? S.K. LEE Pokfulam
