I refer to the report headlined 'Restaurateur tied up in red tape over toilets' (Sunday Morning Post, August 26).
The Buildings Department has claimed the toilets in the Oddfellas restaurant in Sai Kung do not comply with the original plans, being 22cm too wide and 80cm too high. The problems facing Oddfellas illustrate the frustrations and difficulties suffered by members of the public as a result of unrealistic bureaucracy.
So the existing toilets are marginally different in terms of size and layout from the original building plan prepared some 40 years previously. Surely the Buildings Department, with its large staff of highly paid professionals, could be more helpful to members of the public than threatening to close down the restaurant if the toilets are not reconstructed to meet the 40-year-old design. A revised layout plan showing the existing toilets together with a supporting statement from a structural expert would surely be sufficient to update the department's records and allow the restaurant to stay in business.
The Government has recently expressed its concern about the economic downturn and job losses, and has stated its resolve to encourage and assist small businesses. In these circumstances, it is important for all departments to improve and simplify their procedures and be more helpful to small enterprises and members of the community.
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