A government panel has been established to investigate possible civil service misconduct over sub-standard piling on public housing estates.
Chaired by Director of Intellectual Property Stephen Selby, the four-member panel was appointed by Secretary for Housing Dominic Wong Shing-wah yesterday.
It will have the power to interview any civil servants, including Director of Housing Tony Miller, over the scandals in Yuen Chau Kok, Sha Tin and Tin Chung Court, Tin Shui Wai.
A previous independent report by former HSBC chairman John Strickland found both Mr Miller and Housing Authority chairman Rosanna Wong Yick-ming blameless. It identified 10 government employees in relation to malpractice and lack of supervision over the construction of the estates, naming nine of them.
Mr Wong said the new panel would be fair because its members came from different government departments and had relevant expertise and seniority. But legislator Lee Wing-tat expressed shock as to why Mr Selby was appointed, claiming he lacked housing experience.
'It's ridiculous. I cannot comprehend why they chose an officer totally irrelevant to the subject,' said Mr Lee. 'If independence is to be achieved, people outside the Government (with relevant experience) should be appointed.' A bureau spokeswoman said the probe was an internal investigation, adding it was established practise for senior civil servants to be appointed to carry out internal probes. She said Mr Selby was experienced and was competent to lead a fair probe.