bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Anita Lam

Samuel Lai quits after KCRC board sacks general manager; former top civil servant James Blake is named as successor

The KCRC management crisis took another dramatic turn yesterday when acting chief executive Samuel Lai Man-hay announced his resignation - and the government quickly revealed it had already found his replacement.

The changes at the top came only a day after a feud between Mr Lai and KCRC chairman Michael Tien Puk-sun appeared to have been resolved.

Mr Lai's replacement will be former civil servant and veteran engineer James Blake.

The KCRC board accepted Mr Lai's resignation on Wednesday night, after its 10 members decided unanimously to sack marketing general manager Michael Lai Kai-hin with immediate effect.

The board also issued written warnings to 19 other senior managers who, led by Michael Lai, held a press conference to declare support for Samuel Lai shortly before the board met on Tuesday to discuss the crisis. They face dismissal if they make another mistake within a year.

Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen had initially wanted the board to sack all 20 executives, but Mr Tien and Samuel Lai successfully argued against such action, a government source said yesterday.

The Chief Executive's Office said Mr Tsang respected the board's and Samuel Lai's decisions.

Secretary for Environment, Transport and Works Sarah Liao Sau-tung said the board considered the action by the executives had seriously affected the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation's image as a responsible public body.

Dr Liao also gave assurances that the disciplinary action would stop at the dismissal and warnings.

Announcing his resignation to the media yesterday, Samuel Lai said: 'I volunteered the resignation without pressure from anybody. I feel like I should bear sole responsibility for my colleagues' mistakes, and be accountable  for all the adverse impact their action has brought upon the company.'

Mr Lai said he had no regrets about sending a letter to the managing board last Thursday to complain about Mr Tien's management style, which snowballed into the crisis that ultimately led to his own resignation.

'It was never the two of us fighting each other,' he said. 'I did what I had to do and expressed my observations to the board ... I consider it ended satisfactorily.

'We have a win-win situation, and the company wins as well, because we now have a good system [in the division of duties] which will allow the smooth operation of the company even in a time of manpower reshuffle.'

Mr Lai will stay in his position until Mr Blake, a former secretary for works and senior director of the KCRC, takes over. Mr Blake is finalising his employment arrangements with the government.

Michael Lai, who packed and left his office at the KCRC's headquarters in Fo Tan yesterday morning, said he was shocked about the developments but would not comment further before seeking legal advice.

Another government source said Michael Lai was the only executive sacked because he had played a greater role in Tuesday's action. Samuel Lai had resigned because, unlike two previous attempts, on Tuesday he had failed to stop the senior managers from going public.

Mr Blake, 72, was approached by the government under a fall-back option after the KCRC crisis erupted last Thursday, the source said. 'We realised we were faced with a crisis situation and needed to get prepared.'

Dr Liao described the whole incident as unfortunate, and assured the more than 5,000 staff that disciplinary action was over. She also allayed fears the government would take over the running of the company.

But morale at the KCRC hit a new low, with staff condemning the punishment. 'Why are we always wrong? Teachers called for [education official] Fanny Law Fan Chiu-fun to step down all the time and none was punished,' one said.



Crisis at rail firm claims top officials