I am accountable to the chief executive, says Yeoh Eng-kiong Hong Kong's health chief defended his appointment yesterday as head of a committee investigating the government's handling of the Sars outbreak, saying Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa could ask for his resignation if he so wished. Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food Yeoh Eng-kiong was commenting after Mr Tung appointed a nine-member panel of non-government experts to investigate the crisis and prepare defences against a recurrence of Sars. Rejecting calls for his resignation, Dr Yeoh said that under the accountability system, his performance was constantly assessed by the chief executive. 'People died of Sars. We are all sad and we feel the responsibility,' he said. But 'if the chief executive finds me at fault, there are procedures in place whereby he can ask me to resign or decide on other punishment'. 'It is the chief executive's decision, not mine,' he said. Dr Yeoh's comments did little to pacify lawmakers, several of whom said it was a blatant conflict of interests for the health chief to head a panel investigating the health system. Mr Tung, speaking at a press conference where he announced the names of the panel members, said the team's aim was not to point fingers. It was more important to learn from experience and be better prepared for a similar crisis in future. The panel, which consists of seven overseas and two local experts, will prepare a report by September. It will be divided into two groups: epidemiology and public health; and hospital management and clinical treatment. Two more experts from the mainland will be invited to join the panel later. Mr Tung warned that the winter months could bring the threat of another outbreak. 'If that happens, I want to be ready,' he said. 'The question we need to ask ourselves is: Is today's public health system strong enough to provide a quick and efficient response if there is another outbreak like this in Hong Kong?'