I am an active member of a hospital fund-raising committee.
For many years, our committee and many other fund-raising organisations have had to depend upon the Social Welfare Department for the granting of regulated flag days.
This, we are told, is done by an allocation system. No one (except presumably the department) seems to know exactly how it is decided which charities will be chosen. We have asked about the system, but department officials have never explained it to us.
So as to be fair to all fund-raising committees, the allocation process should be done at a designated venue, with representatives from each charity present.
The Jockey Club has an excellent computer system which could be used to allocate numbers to each charity seeking a flag day.
The Government has had to cut back its subvention to charitable organisations and so flag days have become even more important to charities as a means of raising funds. Therefore it is important that the allocation system is done in an open way.
