Welfare chiefs urged to tighten reins on fund-raisers
Welfare chiefs have been urged to tighten controls over street fund-raising activities after an apparently unauthorised activity held on Wednesday was referred to police.
The Social Welfare Department said it was not sure whether the event, purportedly staged by the four-month-old Hong Kong Young Sprout Environmental Protection Association, was a scam as it was held two days ahead of a two-day drive authorised by the department for today and tomorrow.
A spokeswoman said the department had no information on the nature of the group or its charitable activities, despite approving 10 days of fund-raising applications since July 11. Social workers said such lax monitoring raised the possibility of fraud.
Inland Revenue Department records showed that Young Sprout was set up on April 1, but attempts to find the company's representatives failed yesterday and its registered telephone line was connected to a fax machine.
The Social Welfare Department said it was waiting for police information and an explanation by Young Sprout before deciding whether to cancel today's fund-raising event and banning it from receiving permits in future.
All 3,600 charitable institutions approved under the Inland Revenue Ordinance and 20,600 registered societies have to apply for a permit from the director of social welfare before raising money in public. This month, permits were issued to 58 fund-raising groups.
But the department admitted its monitoring was limited to the fund-raising event itself and did not consider the nature of the organisation and its past charitable activities before giving approval. It also did not check how the funds would be used.
Eddie Tsang Chi-hong, of the Hong Kong Council of Social Services, urged the department to conduct thorough checks on applicants' experience and financial reports before giving approval.
