Director of Information Services Yvonne Choi's attempt to 'set the record straight' in addressing reports that her department squandered millions (October 29) has raised more questions than answers.
First, she mentions only training and special services. Can Ms Choi tell us how much was spent annually in each area of operation in the last 10 years, and the amounts for training and special services?
I hear that the millions spent outside the department went to the design of several useless logos (to which other departments contributed money) and for public relations services that her staff should provide as information officers. Only a small sum went to training.
Could she also tell us how many of the 344 people in her department are information officers and state their payroll compared to the rest? Do they include 'spokesmen' seconded to other departments and on their payrolls? How many of these are there? Information Services (ISD) used to have a pool of talent; it regularly recruited directly from the media at up to chief information officer level. It has now stopped (except for several expatriate writers of English).
With due respect, Ms Choi may be a good administrator with most of her career in trade and other departments, but her first day at the ISD was as director. That is why the department is behaving like a mailbox.
Yet the director has a salary and perks that the heads of public relations agencies anywhere could only dream of, plus a staff at least equal to all the major agencies in Hong Kong combined. And her senior-level deputies and assistants - what are they doing?